Hong Kong police arrested four and detained five others Tuesday as authorities sought to stamp out commemorations of the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators in mainland China.
Police were out in force patrolling Hong Kong’s Victoria Park, where an annual candlelight vigil had been held until recent years.
As police patrolled the area, including the two closest subway stations, they did not hesitate to take away people who were publicly marking the anniversary.
Officers led away an elderly man who had held up two handwritten posters listing democracy movements in mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan alongside a poem commemorating June 4. The police action came even though he folded his papers after being warned he would be arrested for “disorderly conduct,” according to a French news agency reporter who tweeted about the incident.
Police told VOA they could not immediately provide information about this case, but he was reportedly released later.
Separately, diplomats from Western countries were seen walking outside the park on Tuesday evening, followed by throngs of press, according to Hong Kong Free Press.
Ahead of the anniversary, police detained performance artist Sanmu Chen in Causeway Bay, the busy Hong Kong shopping district where the park is located.
Before officers approached him, Chen wrote the Chinese characters “8964,” which refer to the date of the crackdown, with his finger in the air. He also mimed the Chinese traditional tomb sweeping ritual of pouring wine onto the ground to mourn the dead, according to local media Hong Kong Free Press.
He was released the same night, Hong Kong police told VOA.
Local media reported several other people, including an activist who shouted, “People will not forget,” were also taken away, while people searched and questioned a woman whose phone flashlight was turned on.
In the past week, eight people were arrested for allegedly posting “seditious” messages, reports say.
For years, the vigil in Victoria Park drew thousands of participants. At its height, 500,000 people gathered in remembrance of the crackdown, making Hong Kong the only place in China where June 4 commemorations could be held. For a time, it was also the world’s largest commemorative Tiananmen Square event.
The vigils, however, disappeared after Beijing imposed its 2020 national security law on Hong Kong in response to widespread and sometimes violent 2019 protests over a later-rescinded extradition bill. The measure would have allowed authorities to send suspected financial criminals to the mainland for trial.
The 2020 law criminalizes secession, subversion, collusion with foreign forces and terrorism. While the government credits it with restoring order, critics say it has curtailed Hong Kong’s freedoms, including the right to hold events like the vigil, that last major one of which was held in 2019.
2024 law
Planners of past vigils tell VOA that authorities remain worried large-scale events could still be used as a platform for broader protest. The government appears to have confirmed those concerns with this year’s passage of Article 23, a domestic security measure that expands on the national security law, criminalizing and expanding penalties for offenses including sedition, secession and subversion.
Addressing reporters on Tuesday, Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee said “different people may use different excuses to hide their intentions.”
“It’s important we all bear that in mind, to be on guard all the time against attempts to cause trouble to Hong Kong, particularly disturbing public peace,” he said.
One-time vigil organizer Richard Tsoi, a member of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, said Article 23 makes even small commemorations riskier.
“Now with Article 23, the penalty is higher … so the risk is higher,” said Tsoi, who served eight months in prison after defying the government’s ban on holding the vigil in 2020. The group disbanded the following year.
Some people, however, are commemorating privately. One activist posted a picture online of a wooden cross, flowers and a card with the words “People Will Not Forget” positioned by what appears to be Victoria Harbor.
So far, no one has been arrested for posting images, but local media reported a former district councilor’s display of candles in his shop was removed after a visit by plainclothes police officers.
The Tiananmen Square crackdown occurred when government troops fired on student-led pro-democracy protesters on June 4, 1989. Hundreds, possibly thousands, died.
At the park, one elderly man said there was no need to commemorate June 4.
“It was a tragedy, but it’s over; just let it go. Now the mainland and Hong Kong are doing so well. I hope they don’t organize any more protests; it was terrible for Hong Kong’s economy,” said the man. He declined to reveal his name because he considers the topic sensitive. “Wherever you live, you hope it is peaceful and stable.”
Asked if he was worried about the loss of Hong Kong’s freedom of expression, he said, “Everyone’s definition of freedom is different. You think freedom is like this. I think freedom is like that…. I need stability so that the economy is good and people can make a living.”
Farther away, a young mother described fond memories of participating in vigils as a teenager.
“It was very peaceful. It was to let us remember what happened,” said April, using a pseudonym to protect her privacy.
She now feels “helpless” about what had become of her beloved Hong Kong and “confused” about the events of the 2019 protests: who was in the wrong — violent protesters or police — and whether foreign influence was involved.
“I try not to think about it,” she said. “I used to support fighting for justice, but now I think I should just shut my mouth.”
Silence and lack of commemorations could mean future generations won’t know about Tiananmen — or at least not as much, Tsoi said. Since the end of the vigils, no place, not even democratic Taiwan, has been able to replace Hong Kong’s role in commemorating the crackdown.
“If this continues, people will forget this incident, the related history and the truth, especially the new generation,” he said, adding that Hong Kong textbooks have heavily redacted accounts of that historic event, and books on the topic have been removed from libraries and most bookstore shelves.
“I think the 1989 movement and June 4th is a major incident in … China’s modern history, which still affects today. There are still many unanswered questions, such as why the government decided at the time to clear the square, and how many people died,” Tsoi said. “Such a major incident shouldn’t be forgotten; it should be examined.”
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday expressed support for anyone reflects on the events of that one day in June of 1989.
“As Beijing attempts to suppress the memory of June 4, the United States stands in solidarity with those who continue the struggle for human rights and individual freedom,” he said.
Staff at the U.S. consulate in Hong Kong lined windowsills with candles, which were visible after dusk.
