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In association with the Chinese Monitoring Group, Dimsum asks its readers to
support a Chinese family, alleged victims of continual racist abuse, who were
arrested
and charged when they were forced to defend themselves.
Mrs Bik Kuen Wong and
Mr Pun Hei Wong own the Fontana Chinese Takeaway. It is a small family business
run by Mr and Mrs Wong since 2000. They lived above the shop with their 4
years old daughter as their family home. Local youths frequently attack The
Fontana
Chinese Takeaway harassing, abusing and causing criminal damage to the property
and Mr & Mrs Wong. Mr and Mrs Wong had on numerous occasions reported
such incidents to the police, but the harassment, abuse and attacks continued
unabated.
There was no arrest or persecution resulted from his reports of harassment,
abuse and criminal damages.
On 4th December 2002, at about 10:20pm, a group of about six young people in
their early 20s gathered outside the shop tempering with the shop window. Mr
Wong heard noises of banging window and went outside the shop to tell the young
people to stop. The young men turned aggressive towards Mr Wong. Mr Wong feared
for his own safety and apologised to the youth to calm them down, he then returned
to his shop.
As he was entering his shop, a young woman was walking out of the shop, she
was swearing and shouting at Mrs Wong. As Mr Wong was entering the counter
area,
someone hit a bottle at the back of his head and he fell to the floor by the
kitchen door.
He saw the group of young men that he confronted with earlier outside the shop
were behind him, and they punched and kicked him as he was lying on the floor.
Mrs Wong tried to stop the attack on Mr Wong without success. Mrs Wong went to
the phone and called the police for assistance. Mr Wong struggled to get up and
took a knife from the kitchen table to stop the young men from attacking him.
The young men stepped back, at this point, one of the young people smashed a
bottle on Mrs Wong’s forehead. Mr Wong saw blood streaming down from his
wife’s forehead. Mr Wong was feared for the safety for himself and his
wife and young daughter who was sleeping in the room above the shop, he swung
the knife in his hand and went to rescue his wife from being further attack.
The youth left the shop and gathered outside, Mr Wong quickly locked the shop
front door and attended to Mrs Wong’s wound to try to stop her bleeding.
The young people were kicking and banging the shop front window outside the shop
when the police arrived at the scene.
The police summon ambulance to take Mrs Wong to hospital, took statement from
Mr Wong. About an hour later, the police arrested Mr Wong. Mr Wong arranged a
friend to pick up his daughter and his brother in law who was visiting them to
stay at the friend’s home before he went to the police station. Mr Wong
was put on bail following police questioning.
Upon Mr and Mrs Wong returning to their shop on 5th December, they found two
of the shop windows were smashed. Mr and Mrs Wong in feared of their safety,
and went to stay with friends temporarily. The shop was further damaged in the
following days causing all windows were smashed and doorframes were broken. Whaddon
police feared for further trouble if Mr and Mrs Wong return to their shop, and
appealed for peace in the local press, Gloucester Echo.
Mr and Mrs Wong did not open the shop since the 4th December 2002 for fears
of their safety. police advised Mr and Mrs Wong that it was unsafe for them
to return
to the shop, they further advised Mr and Mrs Wong that they must seek police
company to return to their shop if they wished to collect belongings from there.
Mr and Mrs Wong moved out of Gloucester. They were driven out of their business
and their livelihood, they are unable to find a buyer of their shop, and their
saving is now running out in keeping up rent and other payments of the shop.
On 15th April 2003, the police charged Mr Wong with two counts of Grevious Bodily
Harm (GBH) with intent. No one was charged for causing GBH to Mrs Wong and Mr
Wong, nor anyone was charged with the criminal damages to their shop, no one
was charged for driven the family out of their family business and family home.
The Monitoring Group (TMG) is very concern by the turn of events in this case.
Mr Wong is a victim of persistence harassment, abuse and attacks. Mr and Mrs
Wong were running a small family business earning a livelihood and serving
the local community. The shop had frequently been harassed and attacked by
local
youth, as verified in local press by the pub landlord opposite the shop.
The attack upon the Wong family on 4th December 2002 was unprovoked, and that
they summoned police assistance as soon as possible. The attackers armed with
bottled to attack both Mr Wong and Mrs Wong causing serious injuries to Mrs
Wong. Mr Wong was forced to defend the safety of himself and his young family
against
five or six armed young people.
The grave risk to Mr Wong and his family is self demonstrated by the fact that
the police had to appeal for peace in the press, and warned Mr and Mrs Wong
NOT to return to the shop unaccompanied by police. This is a declaration that
the
police was unable to guarantee the safety of the Wong family.
I would draw your attention to the ACPO guideline ‘Breaking the Power of
Fear & Hate’ The ACPO guideline recognised repeated attacks on building
owns by minority ethnic group constitutes hate crimes. It defines ‘when
the same person or venue suffers from more than one crime over a rolling 12 month
period’ is repeated victimisation. It recognised ‘arrest and prosecution
of the offender will often be the first means of preventing repeat victimisation.’(Section
5.8)
The ACPO guidance further recognised ‘victims of hate crime suffer primary
victimisation at the hands of their attackers. If as crime victims they experience
indifference or rejection from the police, this amount to an additional process
of secondary victimisation.’ It concluded ‘ an immediate consequence
of secondary victimisation, apart from its longer-term effects, is that it will
be harder to establish constructive dialogue with the victim. This in turn means
a conduit for intelligence is lost and it becomes harder to deliver the best
support of all effective action against offenders.’(Section 6.5iii)
Mr Wong is a victim of repeated hate crimes, and that the police failed to
arrest or prosecute any offenders to stop the situation from escalation.
When the disturbance
escalated to life threatening situation, and Mr Wong was forced to defend
himself and his young family. The police charged Mr Wong, instead of the
perpetrators,
the police is inflicting secondary victimisation on Mr Wong.
TMG has dealt with about 20 similar incidents in the last couple of years
whereby Chinese victims of crime when sought assistance from the police,
the police
unwilling or unable to take actions against the perpetrators. The frequency
of harassment
and attacks escalate and became life-threatening situation. When Chinese
victims were forced to defend themselves and the perpetrators got hurt,
the police
were quick to arrest and charge Chinese victims and let the perpetrators
go free.
TMG and Dimsum calls upon you to write to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS)
to appeal to them to drop the charges against Mr Wong and to take actions
against the perpetrators causing injuries to Mr and Mrs Wong and their
lost of business.
It would not be in public interests to proceed with this prosecution for
the following reasons: Your appeal to CPS should highlight the following
points:
1) The prosecution will send the wrong message to the youth in Chelthenham
area
that racial harassment and attacks on Chinese shops are acceptable behaviours.
2) It provokes outcry in the Chinese community to see yet another case of secondary
victimisation against Chinese catering shop keeper – Mr Wong was first
victimised by the perpetrators, then victimised at the hand of the police.
3) this case if allowed to go ahead will further damage the fragile confidence
of the Chinese community with the police and the criminal justice system.
It will
send a negative message to the Chinese community.
Please write to: Senior Crown Prosecutor, Crown Prosecution Service, 2 Kimbrose
Way, Gloucester GL1 2DB
Re: Mr Pun Hei WONG, Fontana Chinese Takeaway, 110 Whaddon Road, Chelthenham,
Gloucestershire GL525NG
CPS reference: AJBSJF
URN Ref: 53/A6076/02
And write to:
Chief Constable T Brain, Gloucester Constabulary, Cheltenham police Station,
Lansdown Road, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire GL5 16QT.Please send copy of your
letter to CPS or Chelthenham police to Jabez Lam at The Monitoring Group,
14 Featherstone Road, Southall, Middx UB2 5AA, or
If you wish to discuss further, please call Jabez Lam at 07940 514 268
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