Sam Cheung | |
|---|---|
| 張可森 | |
 Cheung in 2020 | |
| Member of theTuen Mun District Council | |
| In office 1 January 2020 – 11 May 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Kwu Hon-keung |
| Constituency | San Hui |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1993-08-17)17 August 1993 (age 32) |
| Citizenship | Hong Kong |
| Political party | Tuen Mun Community Network |
| Residence | Hong Kong |
| Alma mater | Hong Kong Baptist University |
Sam Cheung Ho-sum (Chinese:張可森; born 17 August 1993) is aHong Kong politician,social activist, and former member of theTuen Mun District Council forSan Hui.[1]
Cheung was educated at theHong Kong Baptist University, where he obtained aMaster of Philosophy (MPhil) from the Department of Humanities and Creative Writing.[2][3] Cheung's social activism began in his first year of university, after he joined the 2012 protests against theMoral and National Education scheme.[4] In 2014, he was anexchange student and studied inAustria.[5] During his academic career, Cheung participated in writing contests and gained award recognition for hisliterary criticism.[6][7]
Since high school, Cheung had a passion forsongwriting, taking lessons from renownedlyricistsAlbert Leung and Chow Yiu-fai.[8][9] In 2018, he joined theComposers and Authors Society of Hong Kong (CASH) and began to write lyrics forCantonese songs.[9][10]
Cheung's employment history included working as ateaching assistant, research assistant, and university tutor.[1][11] He also earnedcommissions for his songwriting.[8] He originally planned to pursue adoctoral degree in theUnited States, but decided to stay in Hong Kong after theprotests commenced in 2019.[5] According to Cheung, he made this decision when the protests sparked an emotional attachment to his home inTuen Mun.[12]
Cheung was among the numerouspro-democracy activists who ran in the2019 District Council election. He competed in theSan Hui constituency under the banner "Unity of San Hui".[13] On 25 November 2019, he was elected to theTuen Mun District Council with 60.49% of the votes, defeatingpro-establishmentincumbent Kwu Hon-keung.[14] Prior to the election, Kwu retained his position for nearly two decades until he was challenged by Cheung.[7] Following his victory, Cheung joined thelocalist campTuen Mun Community Network, which held five seats inTuen Mun'sDistrict Council.[15] On 11 May 2021,Home Affairs Department confirmed that Cheung has resigned from the job title.[16]
In July 2020, Cheung ran in the unofficialpro-democracy primaries for the2020 Hong Kong legislative election within theNew Territories West constituency. He came in second by receiving 35,513 votes afterEddie Chu, while surpassing veteran democratsAndrew Wan andKwok Ka-ki in fifth and sixth place respectively.[17] Cheung earned one of the six nomination spots in the general election, along with third placerWong Ji-yuet and fourth placerNg Kin-wai.[18]
On 6 January 2021, Cheung was among 53 members of the pro-democratic camp who werearrested under thenational security law, specifically its provision regarding alleged subversion. The group stood accused of the organisation of and participation in the primary elections in July 2020.[19] Cheung was released on bail on 7 January.[20]
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member ofTuen Mun District Council Representative forSan Hui 2020–2021 | Vacant |