HK Police Slammed for Arresting People Remembering Tiananmen Square Massacre

Vice-chairwoman of Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, Chow Hang Tung, poses with a candle ahead of the 32nd anniversary of the massacre of pro-democracy demonstrators at Beijing's Tiananmen Square in 1989, in Hong Kong, on June 3, 2021. Lam Yik/Reuters

Human rights organizations have slammed Hong Kong authorities for arresting six people, including Tonyee Chow Hang-tung, a well-known barrister and activist, for organizing remembrance activities ahead of the anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre.

On May 28, Hong Kong police arrested six people aged 37 to 65 for allegedly “acting with seditious intention” under the recently adopted Article 23 legislation (Safeguarding National Security Ordinance)—a sweeping new security law that critics say Beijing has used to eliminate the city’s dwindling freedom.

The police accused one female suspect of exploiting “an upcoming sensitive date to repeatedly publish posts with seditious intention on a social platform anonymously with the assistance of at least six arrested persons since April 2024, with content provoking hatred towards the Central Authorities and the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and the Judiciary, as well as inciting netizens to organize or participate in relevant illegal activities at a later stage,” read a police statement.

The unidentified “upcoming sensitive date” appears to refer to June 4, the anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre. On June 4, 1989, China’s ruling communist regime sent troops and tanks to the heart of the Chinese capital and opened fire on unarmed protesting students calling for democracy and a more open society. Since then, any mention of the incident has been strictly censored by the regime in mainland China.

Among the named arrests is Chow Hang-tung, the vice-chair of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of the Democratic Patriotic Movements of China, who has been in custody since 2021 and faces multiple charges, including some related to her role in organizing a previous candlelight vigil commemorating the victims of the Tiananmen Square massacre.

For the past three decades, Hong Kong as a former British colony had remained the only place on Chinese soil beyond Taiwan to host large-scale public candlelight vigils to memorialize the thousands of students killed at the hands of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

The move on May 28 marks the authorities’ first arrests under Hong Kong’s new Article 23 legislation, which, since it was introduced in March, has deepened concerns about the erosion of the freedoms of Hong Kong’s residents by expanding the authorities’ power to deal with possible challenges to its rule, including punishing treason and insurrection with up to life imprisonment. Under the law, offenders convicted of committing seditious acts or uttering seditious words face a maximum jail term of seven years.

The other five people arrested include Ms. Chow’s mother, Chow Lau Wah-chun, 65; former Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China Standing Committee members Lau Ka-yee, 51, and Kwan Chun-bong, 52; pro-democracy former Tsuen Wan District Councillor Katrina Chan Kim-kam, 37; and dentist Lee Ying-chi, 55.

A ‘Shameful’ Act

Amnesty International has condemned the arrests as “shameful” and an “insult” to those killed in the Tiananmen in 1989.

“The Hong Kong government has once again moved to suppress freedom of expression as it attempts to stop people remembering the horrific events of 4 June 1989,” Amnesty International’s China director Sarah Brooks said in a statement.

“Chow Hang-tung’s 1,000th day in detention on national security charges is next week—on 4 June, no less—and the authorities seem intent on ensuring that her fight for freedom is even longer by adding new so-called crimes to her file.

“The government’s shameful attempt to prohibit people from marking the upcoming anniversary is an insult to those killed in the Tiananmen crackdown and their family members.”

Ms. Brooks said that the arrestees, who simply exercised their right to freedom of expression, should be immediately and unconditionally released.

“The Hong Kong police must refrain from suppressing other peaceful commemorations of the 1989 tragedy. Remembering the Tiananmen crackdown is not and never shall be a crime,” she said.

A man holds a poster of the famous “Tank Man” standing in front of Chinese military tanks at Tiananmen Square in Beijing on June 5, 1989, during a commemoration of the 1989 Tiananmen Square event, in Victoria Park in Hong Kong on June 4, 2020. Anthony Wallace/AFP via Getty Images

UK Urged to Speak Out and Take Action

Hong Kong Watch, a UK registered charity working closely with Hong Kong community groups in the diaspora, echoed the condemnation.

“We should take seriously the plan of the Hong Kong authorities to criminalize perfectly acceptable and peaceful activities that are in line with international human rights law, and respond accordingly,” said Benedict Rogers, co-founder and chief executive officer of Hong Kong Watch.

“Following the first arrests under Article 23 legislation, the UK government should declare the bill to be a breach of the Sino-British Joint Declaration. The UK government should also impose sanctions on Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee to hold him to account for the development and enactment of this bill that violates the Joint Declaration and international law.

“We must respond with robust measures that signal to the Beijing and Hong Kong authorities that we will not tolerate escalated threats to human rights and the values we hold dear in Hong Kong and the greater diaspora.”

‘Seeking Legal Assistance a Fundamental Right’

Joining the outcries was also the Hong Kong Centre for Human Rights, which was established in 2022 by a group of human rights defenders from Hong Kong with backgrounds in policy and legal research.

“The Hong Kong government has weaponized the law to infringe on citizens’ rightful exercise of free speech,” reads a statement from the center.

“The government’s approach confirms the concerns of United Nations human rights experts regarding the enactment of the new national security law. The experts had pointed out that the provisions for sedition are vague. It is unclear what constitutes bringing a citizen into ‘hatred,’ ‘contempt’ or ‘disaffection’ against the government.

“Also, the sanctioned actions do not necessarily connect to inciting physical violence or harm. The experts noted that the undefined concepts in the criminal legislation could be misused and arbitrarily applied, posing very real risks to dissidents. Additionally, the severe punishments under the law may further promote self-censorship and erode Hong Kong’s already severely impacted civic space.”

Thousands of participants take part in a memorial vigil to honor the victims of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre in Victoria Park in Hong Kong, China, on June 4, 2020. Sung Pi-lung/The Epoch Times

The center is concerned whether the police will restrict the six arrestees’ right to legal representation during police custody, pursuant to sections 79 and 80 of the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance.

“U.N. Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers stipulates that ‘[a]ll persons are entitled to call upon the assistance of a lawyer of their choice to protect and establish their rights and to defend them in all stages of criminal proceedings.’ We emphasize that seeking legal assistance is a fundamental right, and delaying or restricting this right is detrimental to the detainees and pose a risk of judicial unfairness,” reads the statement.

The center urges the Hong Kong authorities to immediately release the six individuals, and to comply with the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention’s 2022 request to release Ms. Chow immediately and provide her with enforceable rights to compensation and other reparations in accordance with international law.

In the opinion issued to the Hong Kong authorities on May 1, 2023, the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention found that the arrests and detention of Ms. Chow stem from long-term harassment and targeting by the Hong Kong authorities for her peaceful exercise of freedom of speech and assembly, and are therefore arbitrary as they are discriminatory. The Working Group concluded that Ms. Chow’s deprivation of liberty is considered arbitrary detention, violating Articles 2, 9, 14, 19, 21, and 26 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

The center also urged the Hong Kong authorities to “stop suppressing Hong Kong people’s right to commemorate the June 4th incident, and to guarantee Hong Kong people’s right to exercise their freedoms of expression and peaceful assembly without fear.”

Dorothy Li contributed to this report.