Executive Director

Anna Kwok is the Executive Director of the Hong Kong Democracy Council (HKDC), a leading nonpartisan, nonprofit organization for Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement and Hong Kongers in the United States. Under her leadership, HKDC advances Hong Kongers’ fight for basic human rights by fostering a coherent and collaborative community overseas. This is done through its three pillars of work: policy advocacy, diaspora empowerment, and research and education. HKDC actively monitors and documents the plight of political prisoners, as well as the Hong Kong government’s attempts to influence American businesses and foreign policy. HKDC is sanctioned and censored by the PRC and HKSAR governments.

During Hong Kong’s 2019 protests, Kwok was an anonymous activist behind major international campaigns. From urging global leaders to “Stand With Hong Kong” at the G20 Summit through a widely publicized global newspaper ad campaign to broadcasting real-time police locations for on-the-ground protesters, Kwok’s experience epitomizes how Hong Kongers around the world took part in a global, grassroots, decentralized movement.

In 2022, two years after the enactment of the National Security Law, Kwok decided to publicize her identity and personal story against the tides of widespread fear among Hong Kongers abroad. Since then, she has continued her work advocating for Hong Kong despite being repeatedly threatened by the HKSAR government, which has issued a warrant for her arrest and placed a HK$1 million bounty on her head. Her commitment to continue her work in the face of continued repression affirms Hong Kongers’ determination to fight for freedom and democracy everywhere.

Anna has testified before the U.S. Congress and has been interviewed and quoted by BBC, New York Times, Nikkei Asia, NPR, The Economist, The Guardian, Reuters, Radio Free Asia, and Voice of America among other outlets.

Anna Kwok: Reflection on Hong Kong's Pain & Freedom: Our Movement is Our Future | 2022 OsloFF in NY