When the will of the people and the rule of law are hanging in the balance, who will have the courage to defend justice against mass opinions
 
In a desperate world, reasons are overwhelmed by fear and rage; human rights are stripped away from us. "Evil for evil" becomes acquiesced as the new order.
 
Wang Ran is sentenced to death for indiscriminate killing. The raging crowd wants him dead, yet his defence lawyer, Chen Che-hao, after learning about Wang's mental abnormality and the unfair treatment he has suffered during the interrogations, insists on applying for an “extraordinary appeal”, to defend his rights. 
 
The public reaction is exacerbated by Chen's attempt to delay the execution. Not only he but also his wife and daughter get alienated and entangled too.  However, Chen does not succumb to distorted justice. He steadfastly works on the appeal and even proposes on "restorative justice", lobbying all stakeholders: the convicted, his family and the families of the victims to mediate the nature of law. On the other hand, a successful appeal may left the government no way to quell the growing public anger, hence the office tries to accelerate legal procedures and execute the shooting soon… 
 
The Advocate is the latest work of Ivan Kwok, the award-winning playwright of Principle. Through an indiscriminate murder case in Taiwan, he leads the audience into a world of paradoxes where the rule of law and people’s will are locked in a violent to-and-fro tussle. Prejudice is like a haze, misleading people. When Chen stands up against the mass, he is not only defending the rule of law but also trying to mend the rifts among people, as he believes, the more important thing besides punishment, is to let the community walk out of the prejudice and sorrow to find the way ahead with sharp eyes and a clear mind. The light of a single star, though dim, strives to shine in the darkness lest we get lost.


*With the kind permission of The Hong Kong Repertory Theatre