Following Ah Kam becoming the first Hong Kong exile to obtain a Taiwanese identity card, several other exiles have recently obtained residency permits and are preparing to become Taiwanese citizens. Among them is Tsai Chih-hao, who hopes that more and more successful examples will reassure other Hong Kong exiles. Tsai Chih-hao had once fantasized about changing his name and returning to his hometown of Hong Kong to reunite with family and friends, but ultimately abandoned the idea, deciding to face reality. His next step is to protect this new home as a Taiwanese citizen.
Choi Chi-ho, a Hong Kong resident, became one of the first Hong Kongers to flee to Taiwan after participating in the 2019 protests. Compared to Ah Kam, the first Hong Kong exile to be granted permanent residency, Choi Chi-ho submitted his application five days later. In mid-January of this year, he traveled from Chiayi to the Taipei Immigration Agency, a journey of about three hours, to submit his documents. A reporter accompanied him to the Immigration Agency that day and saw him neatly and carefully placing the various documents into a folder, his heart pounding with anxiety. "I was so nervous, worried that I might have missed some documents and had to submit them again, so I prepared for about two weeks."
After becoming a Taiwanese citizen, the idea of changing his name and returning to Hong Kong was abandoned.
Unlike Ah Jin, Tsai Chih-hao waited five months before finally receiving approval to settle in Taiwan and become a Taiwanese citizen. He had fantasized about changing his name and returning to his hometown of Hong Kong to see his relatives and friends, even if only briefly, but ultimately dismissed the idea, having to face reality: "That seems too naive. You've been in Taiwan for so long; you know there are many spies in the political situation. It's impossible not to catch them now; technology is so advanced, they can identify you with a simple facial recognition scan."
After receiving his residency permit, his next steps are to apply for citizenship, a Taiwanese identity card, and a passport. He also hopes to repay those who helped him by treating them to a meal: "I can only say thank you. Without the help of the pastor of the Jinan Presbyterian Church, other kind-hearted people, parents, and even the Taiwanese government, I don't think I could have stayed in Taiwan for so long, let alone obtained an identity card. In fact, I saw many difficulties faced by everyone along the way, but the moment we received our documents, we knew that Taiwan's so-called support for the Hong Kong protesters had not changed."
Even though they have become Taiwanese, their Hong Kong identity will never change. Tsai Chih-hao believes he now carries an added sense of civic responsibility as a Taiwanese. Over the past five years, he has participated in numerous civic activities, such as hosting the June 4th vigil and the "228" protests: "Since you are someone who cares about civil society and stands up for freedom and justice, you can't possibly see injustice elsewhere and not stand up. Coming here, I need to integrate into this land, see the injustice clearly, and standing up is also my way of facing my own trauma. To be selfish, I stand up to alleviate my guilt. Coming here, I'm using a different way to fight."
Emotional distress in the early stages of arriving in Taiwan
The so-called guilt was actually his inability to let go of the past. In Cai Zhihao's home, there was a suitcase tucked away in a corner, one he didn't want to touch. Inside was a letter his mother had secretly written to him before he left Hong Kong. He recalled a day in July 2019 when, after a protest, he returned home and his mother saw that his feet were bleeding. His mother simply said, "You chose this path yourself. Don't cry if you 'fail.' You should bear the consequences of your choices." Saying goodbye to his family and moving to a strange place, he was initially troubled by emotions, hiding at home and sleeping all day. Later, he sought inner peace by fishing at the seaside, and slowly emerged from the whirlpool of emotions.
Although they finally obtained permanent residency and no longer had to worry about being unable to stay in Taiwan, the path of this project was not easy. The first group of protesters who fled to Taiwan initially could only seek help from NGOs. It wasn't until 2020, with the establishment of the "Taiwan-Hong Kong Service and Exchange Office" by the Taiwanese government, which took charge of humanitarian aid projects, that the system gradually became more systematic. However, the details of this project were kept secret, and issues such as government transitions further exacerbated the uncertainty among the exiles. Even after joining the project, the government never publicly disclosed how they could permanently reside in Taiwan. By 2022, although a clearer method for applying for residency emerged, it was still not officially documented, leading many early protesters to fear unforeseen circumstances and ultimately decide to abandon Taiwan and flee to other countries.
Now that Tsai Chih-hao has been granted permanent residency, he feels that it proves he made the right choice to believe in Taiwan. He hopes that his success will reassure other exiles who are waiting for permanent residency and make their future application process clearer.
