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Li Pengfei (Hong Kong)

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Adapted from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0Updated 13 July 202516 sources

Li Peng‑fei, nicknamed “Brother Flying,” was a prominent figure in Hong Kong’s business and political circles. He served as a member of both the Legislative Council and the Executive Council, was the founding chairman of the Hong Kong Liberal Party, and was a delegate to the Ninth and Tenth National People’s Congress from the Hong Kong constituency. Born in occupied Yantai, Shandong during the Second Sino‑Japanese War, he grew up in Shanghai and later Hong Kong. He hosted the Cable TV finance program “Flying Politics,” RTHK television’s “Legco Review,” and Now TV’s current affairs show “Big Talk,” before announcing his retirement from broadcasting in July 2018.[1]

On May 19, 2020, his family issued a notice confirming that Li Peng‑fei had passed away on May 15 at the age of eighty.[2]

Early life

Born in Yantai, Shandong in 1940, Li lived in Shanghai before settling in Hong Kong in 1954. He completed primary schooling in Shanghai and attended Three‑Sixty College in Clear Water Bay ( Form 3 graduate, 1956)[3] and Pui Ying Middle School ( Form 6 graduate, 1959)[4][5]. He excelled in biblical studies[6]. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Engineering Mathematics from the University of Michigan, then joined Lockheed Corporation in 1966 as Test Engineering Supervisor. He returned to Hong Kong in 1972. Li and his wife had two sons and one daughter.

Political career

In 1982, Li was appointed Chairman of the Hong Kong Productivity Council.

In 1978, Governor Sir Murray MacLehose appointed him to the Legislative Council; in 1985 Governor Sir Edward Youde appointed him to the Executive Council. From 1987 to 1989 he chaired the Broadcast Authority. He became Senior Unofficial Member of LegCo in 1988. On February 6, 1990, he survived a knife attack at his Sha Tin home, sustaining a head wound that was not life‑threatening.[7] In June 1990, he received an Honorary Doctorate from Hong Kong Polytechnic (now PolyU).[8] In 1991 he co‑founded the Democratic Resources Centre with Christine Fung and Emily Lau to counter the influence of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China. Following Governor Chris Patten’s appointment, he and other Executive Council members resigned en masse. In 1993 he founded the Liberal Party and became its first chairman. He later proposed the “94 Proposal” to amend Patten’s reform package, but it was rejected.[9]

In the 1995 LegCo election, he won New Territories North‑East. He served in the Provisional Legislative Council but lost the 1998 election in the New Territories East constituency under remainder vote counting to Cyd Ho of The Frontier, prompting his resignation as party chairman. The Liberals failed to win direct seats until 2004. He subsequently withdrew from the party and shifted from pro‑establishment to moderate stance.

After losing his seat, he occasionally hosted programs on Commercial Radio until being “de‑mic’ed” in 2005. He was a National People’s Congress delegate from 1998 to 2008.

During the 2003 controversy over Article 23, he warned of “blood‑shed in Central” if the bill passed that July. He was a long‑time host of RTHK’s “Legco Review,” retiring in 2018.[10]

On April 24, 2013, he joined the “Hong Kong 2020” think tank led by former Secretary for Administration Anson Chan to advance 2017 Chief Executive and 2020 LegCo universal suffrage proposals.[11]

After shifting toward the pan‑democratic camp, he criticized pro‑establishment legislators and later regretted founding the party over the HK$20 minimum wage debate, saying “We shouldn’t have founded the party that day.”[12]

During the 2019 protests, he urged Chief Executive Carrie Lam to “stand with Hong Kong people,” co‑signed calls to withdraw the extradition bill and form an independent inquiry, though Lam did not heed his advice.[13]

Memorial service

On June 26, 2020, a memorial service was held at Queen Elizabeth Hall, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, Wan Chai. The hall was decorated in white with his portrait and video montages of his life; no formal ceremony was held. Attendees included Chief Executive Carrie Lam, former Chief Secretary Henry Tang, Secretary for Justice Teresa Cheng, legislators from both camps, LegCo President Andrew Leung, ex‑Urban Council chairman Li Yau‑hing, former Secretary for Justice Elsie Leung, ex‑Executive Council convenor Michael Hua, ex‑Civil Service Secretary Paul Tang, among others. Former party colleague Emily Lau accompanied his widow Choi Yuen‑ha; university heads and business figures also sent wreaths.[14]

“Cheng Siu‑sam / Chen Shou‑shan” incident

Main article: Commercial Radio License Renewal Controversy

Commercial Radio invited Li to host “Tea Cup in the Storm,” which lasted only 13 days. In May 2004, former Sino‑British Liaison Group representative Cheng Siu‑sam called Li late at night discussing his family, prompting Li to resign, citing privacy concerns. Li believed the caller was Chen Shou‑shan; Cheng later confirmed it was he, denying a central government directive.[15]

On May 27, 2004, during a special LegCo meeting, Li exposed the matter and expressed unfamiliarity with Cheng. On July 28, 2004, he reprimanded committee member Yu Cheng on “Tea Cup in the Storm,” and was called a “deserted elder.”[16]

Honours

Titles

  • Unofficial Justice of the Peace (1980)
  • OBE (1982)
  • CBE (1988)

Honorary doctorates

  • Honorary Doctor of Engineering, Hong Kong Polytechnic (1990)
  • Honorary Doctor of Laws, The Chinese University of Hong Kong (1990)

Works

  • Thirty Years in the Storm: Memoirs of Allen Lee (Hong Kong, First Edition June 2004) ISBN 988‑97754‑3‑3

Racehorses

A Hong Kong Jockey Club member, he owned horses including Shandong Champion, Shandong Literary Hero, East Sea Dragon, and, jointly with Christine Fung, the stable “Rich Port Foundation” in the 1990s.

References

  1. ↑ https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9D%8E%E9%B5%AC%E9%A3%9B_(%E9%A6%99%E6%B8%AF)#cite_ref-1
  2. ↑ https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9D%8E%E9%B5%AC%E9%A3%9B_(%E9%A6%99%E6%B8%AF)#cite_ref-RTHK-20200519_2-0
  3. ↑ https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9D%8E%E9%B5%AC%E9%A3%9B_(%E9%A6%99%E6%B8%AF)#cite_ref-3
  4. ↑ https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9D%8E%E9%B5%AC%E9%A3%9B_(%E9%A6%99%E6%B8%AF)#cite_ref-4
  5. ↑ https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9D%8E%E9%B5%AC%E9%A3%9B_(%E9%A6%99%E6%B8%AF)#cite_ref-5
  6. ↑ https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9D%8E%E9%B5%AC%E9%A3%9B_(%E9%A6%99%E6%B8%AF)#cite_ref-6
  7. ↑ https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9D%8E%E9%B5%AC%E9%A3%9B_(%E9%A6%99%E6%B8%AF)#cite_ref-7
  8. ↑ https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9D%8E%E9%B5%AC%E9%A3%9B_(%E9%A6%99%E6%B8%AF)#cite_ref-8
  9. ↑ https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9D%8E%E9%B5%AC%E9%A3%9B_(%E9%A6%99%E6%B8%AF)#cite_ref-9
  10. ↑ https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9D%8E%E9%B5%AC%E9%A3%9B_(%E9%A6%99%E6%B8%AF)#cite_ref-10
  11. ↑ “Hong Kong 2020” Established, Aims to Propose Reform Within the Year (Dead link)
  12. ↑ https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9D%8E%E9%B5%AC%E9%A3%9B_(%E9%A6%99%E6%B8%AF)#cite_ref-12
  13. ↑ https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9D%8E%E9%B5%AC%E9%A3%9B_(%E9%A6%99%E6%B8%AF)#cite_ref-13
  14. ↑ https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9D%8E%E9%B5%AC%E9%A3%9B_(%E9%A6%99%E6%B8%AF)#cite_ref-14
  15. ↑ https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9D%8E%E9%B5%AC%E9%A3%9B_(%E9%A6%99%E6%B8%AF)#cite_ref-15
  16. ↑ https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9D%8E%E9%B5%AC%E9%A3%9B_(%E9%A6%99%E6%B8%AF)#cite_ref-16

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