“We should, through civic referendums, determine our own pathways and political status after 2047, because in this lies the future of our democratic movement. If Hong Kong could exercise democratic self-governance under the sovereignty of China, it would not be necessary for us to take this step on the path toward independence.”

Hong Kong activist and politician

Joshua Wong Chi-fung is a Hong Kong activist and politician. He became known as a leading figure in the city’s pro-democracy movement, first through the student activist group Scholarism and later as secretary-general of Demosistō until the party was disbanded after the Hong Kong national security law took effect on 30 June 2020. He first drew wide international attention during the 2014 Hong Kong protests, when his role in the Umbrella Movement brought him prominent media coverage. He was included in Time magazine’s Most Influential Teens of 2014 and was nominated for its Person of the Year title that same year. Fortune named him among the world’s greatest leaders in 2015.