Police officers on Friday set up a press conference as the Hong Kong government announced the temporary closure of Victoria Park, where a candlelight vigil was once held.
Rafael Wober / AP
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Rafael Wober / AP
Police officers on Friday set up a press conference as the Hong Kong government announced the temporary closure of Victoria Park, where a candlelight vigil was once held.
Rafael Wober / AP
HONG KONG – Dozens of police officers patrolled Hong Kong’s Victoria Park on Saturday after authorities for the third year in a row banned the public from celebrating the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown. .
For decades, an annual candlelight vigil has been held in the park in memory of the military’s violent crackdown on student protesters for greater democracy at Tiananmen Square in North Korea. Sutra on June 4, 1989. Hundreds, if not thousands, were killed.
The ban is seen as part of a move to weed out dissent and a sign that Hong Kong is losing its freedoms as Beijing tightens its grip on the semi-autonomous Chinese city. Country.
The vigil organizers, the Hong Kong Alliance for Support of China’s Patriotic Democratic Movements, disbanded last year after several of its leaders were arrested on suspicion of violating security laws. country, imposed after massive pro-democracy protests in 2019.
Authorities have cited risks from the coronavirus by banning public memorials for the past three years. Critics say the pandemic is being used as an excuse to infringe on the right to assembly.
A government statement on Friday said parts of Victoria Park, traditionally the site of candlelight ceremonies, would be closed as it could be used for “illegal activities”. France.” The move is intended to “prevent any unauthorized assembly” in the park and reduce the potential for the spread of COVID-19.
Earlier this week, a police chief warned that anyone who gathers in a group “at the same place, at the same time and with the common purpose of expressing a certain point of view” could be considered a criminal. part of an unauthorized assembly.
Since the British handed Hong Kong over to China in 1997, the city has been governed under a “one country, two systems” framework that gives it freedoms not found on the mainland, including freedom of speech and assembly.
For many years, Hong Kong and Macao were the only places on Chinese soil that were allowed to commemorate the Tiananmen Square crackdown. In China, keywords such as “Tiananmen massacre” and “June 4” are heavily censored online, and people are not allowed to openly bookmark events.
Hong Kong’s crackdown on Tiananmen Square celebrations has drawn international criticism.
“Today, the struggle for democracy and freedom continues to resonate in Hong Kong, where the annual ceremony to commemorate the Tiananmen Square massacre has been banned by China and the Hong Kong government. in an attempt to stamp out the memories of that day,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement, referring to the People’s Republic of China.
Blinken said the US will continue to speak out and promote accountability for China’s human rights abuses, including those in Hong Kong, against Muslim minorities in the western region. Western Xinjiang as well as Tibet.
“For the Chinese people and those who continue to fight injustice and seek freedom, we will not forget June 4,” he said.
Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs wrote on its Facebook page that “as this time of year approaches, there are a lot of people who can’t speak, a lot of people who can’t write, and a lot of people who can’t even look up on the internet. “
The post encouraged Chinese nationals to use VPNs to access Facebook, which is blocked in China, and to search for information about the Tiananmen Square massacre “to see what their country is hiding.” .
“We hope that no more individuals have to sacrifice for the party and that freedom, democracy and human rights can become our common language with them,” the ministry post said.
Amid the ban on events in Hong Kong, overseas gatherings and seminars in the US, Taipei, Prague and elsewhere have taken on greater significance, with online calls encouraging people to participation.
In recent years, organizations including universities have also removed sculptures and artworks marking the Tiananmen massacre to comply with draconian national security laws Beijing imposed on the city in June 2020.
Authorities have used the law to crack down on the opposition, with more than 150 people arrested on suspicion of subversion, secession, terrorism and collusion with foreign countries to interfere in city affairs. .
In December 2021, a sculpture called “Pillar of Shame”, depicting torn and twisted bodies representing the lives lost in the massacre, was taken down at the University Hong Kong. Officials say there are no approvals to display the sculpture.
A day later, two other universities in the city removed monuments related to the Tiananmen massacre, citing similar reasons as well as legal issues.
Last week, Jens Galschiøt, the artist who created “Pillar of Shame,” unveiled a full-scale replica of the 8-meter (26-foot) tall sculpture at the University of Oslo in Norway.
