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Opinion | Rights of disabled in Hong Kong must be fully respected in light of court judgment on killing of autistic boy

Tragic case in which father killed his son fearing he was a burden to the family raises troubling questions

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A High Court judge jailed the father for four years for killing his autistic son. Photo: Sam Tsang

Two years ago, a father killed his 15-year-old autistic son by chopping him 100 times and then attempted to kill himself. He pleaded guilty to manslaughter in July.

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More than 700 mitigation letters were received and the man was jailed for four years by the High Court. The judge rightly pointed out that it was a tragedy from every angle. However, the sentence appeared to be light for a planned and intentional killing.

It was a case of manslaughter, yet a very sad case. The man saw his autistic son as a “burden” and thought by eliminating that burden”, family life would return to normal.

He was reportedly a responsible father and husband, suffering from severe depression due to the condition of his son.

We should consider the case with compassion and humanity, but justice should not be overlooked in the interests of the victim whose life was undeservedly taken away. Autism or disability of any sort should never be an excuse for killing

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Hopefully, the court has not sent the wrong message.

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