Andrew Wan Siu-kin 尹兆堅

Andrew Wan Siu-kin is a Hong Kong politician and former vice-chairman of the Democratic Party (香港民主黨).[1] He was elected as a member of the Legislative Council (LegCo) in 2016, representing New Territories West, and served as Kwai Tsing District Councillor for the Shek Yam (石蔭) constituency from 2004 to 2015 and from 2020 to 2021. [2]

Wan holds a Bachelor of Social Science in Social Work from the City University of Hong Kong (香港城市大學) and a Masters of Arts in Sociology from the University of Essex.

The 1989 Tiananmen Square Movement cultivated his civic awareness and participation in politics. In 2002, he joined the pro-democracy Neighbourhood and Worker’s Service Centre (NWSC; 街坊工友服務處) as the assistant of legislator Leung Yiu-chung (梁耀忠) and ran in the 2003 District Council elections, defeating the pro-Beijing candidate in Shek Yam and was re-elected in 2007. Wan quit the NWSC in 2008 and joined the Democratic Party in 2009. In 2014, he became vice-chairman of the party. [3]

He was elected in the 2016 Hong Kong Legislative Council election through New Territories West. During his tenure in the Legislative Council, Wan gained attention for his frequent challenges against pro-Beijing lawmakers and the Hong Kong government. His outspoken stance led to multiple confrontations during LegCo meetings between 2018 and 2020, resulting in charges including contempt, obstructing LegCo officers, and common assault. Wan was ultimately sentenced to seven weeks in prison for these charges. [4]

In July 2020, Wan participated in the pro-democracy camp primary election for the New Territories West constituency, securing 18,608 votes and a normination for the 2020 Legislative Council election. [5] The election was later postponed by the Hong Kong government, citing the resurgence of the COVID-19 cases. [6]

In November 2020, Wan joined all other pro-democracy lawmakers to resign en masse from the Legislative Council in response to Beijing’s disqualification of four sitting lawmakers. [7]

Wan was among over 50 pro-democracy figures arrested on Jan. 6, 2021, on suspicion of conspiracy to commit subversion under the National Security Law for his participation in the primary election in July 2020, and has been in custody since Feb. 28, 2021. [8] His bail request was denied on March 4, 2021, and a subsequent appeal on March 23, 2021, was also rejected. [9] On May 11, 2021, while still in detention, he resigned from his position as a District Councillor, believing that he could not effectively fulfill his duties from prison. [10] He pleaded guilty to the charges brought against him. On Nov. 19, 2024, the court ruled him as an active participant in the primary election. Given mitigating factors, including his guilty plea, he was ultimately sentenced to 4 years and 8 months in prison. [11]

Photo Credit: HK01