A social worker and teacher imprisoned for his activism, he later wrote about the toll of incarceration and worked to help others behind bars.
Shiu Ka-chun, a former social worker and pro-democracy lawmaker in Hong Kong who devoted his last years to helping protesters imprisoned after a crackdown on dissent, died Friday in Hong Kong. He was 55.
His wife, Kelly Hui, said his death, in a hospital, was due to stomach cancer.
As a social worker, civil rights activist and for a time as a legislator, Mr. Shiu pushed for the rights of the marginalized, but his participation in a protest movement landed him in prison. He later emerged as a crucial supporter of those incarcerated in the aftermath of a national security crackdown that began in late 2019.
Mr. Shiu was born in June 3, 1969, to a working-class family in Hong Kong. He studied social work at Hong Kong Baptist University, and after graduating started his career as a social worker supporting young people. In 2007, he started teaching social work at the university, where he became known for his engaging lectures. He also honed his voice as a commentator, writing newspaper columns that analyzed social issues through the lens of philosophy and sociology.
Mr. Shiu got involved early on in the 2014 civil disobedience movement, Occupy Central with Love and Peace, which demanded democratic elections for Hong Kong, a semiautonomous Chinese territory. He mobilized other social workers to take part in the protests that blocked traffic in the heart of Hong Kong’s business district. He reached out to people with disabilities or chronic illnesses, or who were homeless, helping to organize dialogues where they discussed what democracy meant for them.
In 2016, he was elected as a lawmaker. He focused on welfare issues such as poverty, homelessness and the conditions at homes for the elderly and people with disabilities.
In 2019, Mr. Shiu was convicted of public nuisance charges for his role in Occupy Central and sentenced to eight months in prison.