Image source,Reuters
In 2021, Hong Kong’s National Security Law will be implemented for one and a half years, bringing earth-shaking changes to civil society. Numerous democratic organizations and groups that have existed for many years were disbanded one after another. The leaders of the organizations were either imprisoned, or left to live in exile, or disappeared.
The authorities believe that Hong Kong’s “transition from chaos to governance” has brought new hope to the city. Critics argue that the familiar Hong Kong no longer exists, and that the freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and freedom of association that people were proud of in the past is scarce.
BBC Chinese counts the organizations or things that disappeared from the lives of Hong Kong people in 2021.
1) “Apple Daily”
Hong Kong “Apple Daily” ceases publication: Say goodbye to “Apple”
On June 17 this year, hundreds of police officers raided the headquarters of Next Media and the Apple Daily newspaper in the name of the National Security Act, and arrested several high-level officials. A week later, the “Apple Daily” announced that due to employee safety considerations, it would cease operations and publish the last physical newspaper on the 24th of the month.
This 26-year-old Hong Kong’s only pro-democratic entity newspaper is coming to an end. Internationally, the incident was interpreted as the end of press freedom in Hong Kong and “one country, two systems”. The Hong Kong police’s enforcement actions have been criticized by European and American governments and human rights organizations.
However, the Hong Kong government and police accused Next Media of engaging in work that endangers national security in the name of news.
The founder Li Zhiying was charged with violating the “National Security Law”. Once convicted, he faces the maximum life imprisonment, and he is also serving his sentence in two other “illegal assembly” cases.
When Hong Kong’s “Apple Daily” was founded, its tabloid style and printing of major newspapers attracted a lot of criticism, but after the handover of Hong Kong’s sovereignty, it has gradually been regarded as a bridgehead for freedom of speech.
2) Position news
After six months, “Stance News”, regarded as the largest pro-democratic Internet media in Hong Kong, also suffered.
200 Hong Kong police officers conducted a search on Wednesday (December 29) and arrested many people on suspicion of “conspiring to publish seditious publications” and freezing HK$61 million in assets. Position News immediately suspended operations.
“Position News” claims to be a non-benefits media, insists on independent editorial and editorial, and its operation mainly relies on advertising and public funding in Hong Kong. During the Hong Kong demonstration in 2019, the live broadcast of the whole process became famous. A reporter was assaulted during the live broadcast of the July 21 Yen Lang “Man in White” attack. His exclusive video received widespread attention and had a profound impact on public opinion.
Hong Kong police used national security law to search “Stance News” former and current senior officials arrested
3) Stake
Hong Kong used to be an important place to commemorate the Tiananmen Square crackdown in 1989, and it was also the only place in Chinese territory where large-scale memorial activities could be held.
But this year, the stake that hosted the “June 4th” event was also disbanded.
Stake Association Zou Xingtong: “Red Line” cannot be used instead of “Bottom Line”
Starting in 2020, the police restricted the “June 4th” candlelight gatherings on the grounds of the new crown epidemic. Democratic leaders and a group of citizens still broke through the blockade and entered Victoria Park to hold small-scale mourning. Many of the activists involved, including Stake Vice Chairman Zou Xingtong, were convicted of “illegal assembly”.
In 2021, the police will also be tightly guarded. On the morning of June 4, Zou Xingtong was arrested. The candlelight at Victoria Park disappeared that night, but citizens were still lighting their mobile phones outside Victoria Park.
The National Security Office of the Hong Kong Police accused the Stake of “foreign agents” in August. Several senior officials of the Stake were arrested. The police also sent people to the June Fourth Memorial Hall to search for evidence.
Many people in the stake and the stake were accused of violating the National Security Law. On September 25, the stake held a general meeting to approve the dissolution.
A spokesperson for the Liaison Office of the Central Committee once criticized that the Stake had adopted “subversion of state power” as its political platform from the very first day of its establishment. In the past 30 years, it had never stopped inciting hatred against China and the ruling party. The dissolution was “the general trend.” Political facts”.
4) “June 4th” symbol
There is no activity to commemorate the “June 4th” movement, and some of the “June 4th” artworks placed on university campuses have been removed one after another.
On the evening of December 22, the University of Hong Kong demolished the “Pillar of National Sorrow” on campus, which was criticized by the author Gao Zhihuo.
The University of Hong Kong intends to move the June 4th sculpture “Pillar of National Sorrow”, students say they can’t move the common memory
Hong Kong University demolishes “Pillar of National Sorrow” at night
Every June, the Hong Kong University Student Union organizes activities to wash away the “pillars of national death” to mourn those who died in the June 4th incident more than 30 years ago.
The Chinese University of Hong Kong has successively removed the statue of the goddess of democracy placed at the entrance and exit of the university station, and Lingnan University has also removed the “June 4th” floating on campus, which has caused concerns about losing Hong Kong, the place guarding the “June 4th”.
5) Civilian Human Rights Front
Since 2003, Hong Kong has had large-scale anti-government protests every July 1st when it returned to China. The organizer, the “Non-governmental Human Rights Front” composed of a number of non-governmental organizations, was disbanded in August this year.
The “FDC” was regarded as the “big platform for peace and justice” in Hong Kong’s 2019 “anti-send” demonstrations. It has staged demonstrations and protests of millions of people. However, with the escalation of demonstrations and the new crown epidemic, the “FDC” “No more successful applications for the parade.
Earlier this year, news broke that the Hong Kong police intends to use the “Ordinance on Societies” to ban FDC, and pro-Beijing media questioned FDC’s collection of foreign funds. Many member groups and organizations of FDC have withdrawn one after another.
Chen Haohuan, convener of the Hong Kong Civil Human Rights Front: “Now is a period of high pressure, and it is inevitable to accept jail time.”
In addition, the FDC convener was behind bars, and the secretariat was actually unmanned. The FDC resolved to disband on August 13.
The Liaison Office of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office have successively issued statements describing the “French People’s Front” as an “anti-China chaos Hong Kong” organization and support law enforcement agencies to investigate the illegal activities of the “Follow People’s Front” and other organizations in accordance with the law.
However, international human rights organizations believe that the “FDC” was forced to disband, and that this was an attack on civil society.
6) Education Association
The “Education Association”, the largest teachers’ union in Hong Kong’s democratic camp, also announced its dissolution in August this year.
The Education Association is the largest single-industry trade union in Hong Kong. It has a history of nearly 50 years and has nearly 100,000 members. It mainly promotes the labor rights and professional development of teachers. It will also cooperate with the Hong Kong Education Bureau to organize some training courses for teachers.
Image source,Getty Images
The authorities have added more national awareness education to schools in Hong Kong.
Politically, representatives of the Education Association have stabilized the seats of the educational functional constituency of the Legislative Council for many years.
However, on July 31 this year, Chinese state media accused the Education Association of “drug disease.” In the Hong Kong demonstration in 2019, it did not persuade teachers and students to participate in illegal acts of violence.
Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor described that the Educational Association had taken political stance over the education profession, and brought anti-government and anti-central sentiments into schools, and “robbed” the entire education sector.
The Education Association finally responded by saying that since the founding of the Association, it has been concerned about the development of the country and the nation and opposed “Hong Kong independence”.
7) Trade Union
Another large-scale pro-democracy trade union, the “Trade Union”, announced its dissolution on October 3 this year. This trade union, which has been established for more than 30 years, has nearly one hundred branches and approximately 145,000 members.
The labor union has been mediating with the government on labor issues to fight for labor rights such as minimum wages. It has launched various labor protests to improve labor conditions. It is also one of the appointed training institutions of the Hong Kong Employees Retraining Board.
In the anti-amendment law turmoil in 2019, the Trade Union also advocated that workers protest by strike. However, as the political environment in Hong Kong changes, core member Li Zhuoren and former chairman Wu Miner are involved in different lawsuits.
Image source,Getty Images
Trade unions in Hong Kong have organized many industrial actions in the past, involving issues such as salaries and benefits. (Profile picture)
Pro-Beijing media and groups put the trade unions together with the stake and the Education Association, accusing the organization of “collaborating with foreign forces” and violating Hong Kong’s National Security Law. After that, many branch unions withdrew from the trade unions.
8) Democratic politicians
Since the implementation of Hong Kong’s National Security Law in June 2020, more than 100 people have been arrested, including 47 pro-democrats in the “primary election.”
A few months after the implementation of the National Security Law, the democratic camp held a “primary election for the Legislative Council”, hoping to elect representatives of the democratic camp for more than half of the seats in the Legislative Council, thereby forcing the regime to accept their demands. Numerous local factions and those in the “anti-send” protests against the rise won an overwhelming victory.
The Hong Kong government considers the “primary election” to be “illegal” and attempts to “conspiracy to subvert state power.” 47 people involved in the case and running for the election were arrested in early 2021, and many of them have not been released on bail. year.
Image source,Reuters
The democratic politicians will either go into exile, be imprisoned, or withdraw from the political arena, and the remaining people will be speechless.
They can only post letters written in prison through friends on social media, or meet relatives, friends and supporters in court during the trial.
On the political level of Hong Kong, the democratic camp has almost disappeared. In the Legislative Council election just held, only one of the 90 seats was a candidate who claimed to be a “non-establishment”.
The district council originally had more than 380 democratic district councillors, but some of them had to resign, leave or leave Hong Kong due to different lawsuits, and because the Hong Kong government later required the district councilors to take an oath, some people resigned or were ruled that the oath was invalid. The remaining dozens of democrats continue to serve as district councilors.
9) Slogan
With more and more trials of the National Security Law, many slogans and phrases that have often appeared in Hong Kong in the past have gradually been clearly identified as “illegal.”
For example, “Recover Hong Kong, Revolution of the Times”, a slogan put forward by Hong Kong native leader Liang Tianqi, became the core slogan of the 2019 demonstrations.
In the “National Security Law” case, the judge did not accept the opinions of defense expert witnesses, and determined that the slogan had the meaning of “secession of the country” and “Hong Kong independence”.
After Beijing introduced the National Security Law in Hong Kong, it is depriving Hong Kong of its inherent freedoms one by one. With more and more people being tried under the new law, Hong Kong’s political ecology has changed forever.
In addition, the Stake has chanted for decades and a program to “end the one-party dictatorship,” and Hong Kong officials have also determined that it means to end the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party, with the intention of subverting state power and endangering national security.
In addition to these official slogans that clearly state their opposition, the people will also review some milder slogans on their own.
For example, in October, during the Hong Kong Marathon, some runners were asked to change because they were wearing “Hong Kong Come On” costumes. In December of this year, at a Christmas market held in Victoria Harbour, a stall owner selling “Hong Kong people” sake was stopped.
Before the Legislative Council election at the end of the year, many people were arrested for reprinting an article by overseas democrats who advocated voting for protest because the Hong Kong government amended the election laws and incited to vote in vain or not to vote is illegal.
10) Artwork
Those affected by Hong Kong’s “National Security Law” also include the literary and artistic circles. Many films related to the Hong Kong demonstrations, such as the movie “Youth” and the documentary “Time Revolution”, etc., were unable to be released in Hong Kong. Won the best documentary award.
Hong Kong passed a law on film censorship in October, and films need to be reviewed by the authorities for no “unfavorable” national security before they can be released.
“Time Revolution” director Zhou Guanwei: “Film can record the era, but also change the era”
In terms of music, activist He Yunshi originally wanted to hold an actor’s meeting in August, but about a week before the event, the venue was cancelled by the venue. She was recently arrested for the “Stance News” incident. There are also street singers arrested for singing the song “Wish the Glory Return to Hong Kong”.
Regarding books in Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Leisure and Cultural Services Department continues to examine whether the contents of books in public libraries violate the “National Security Law” and remove some political books from the shelves.
The Hong Kong Speech Therapists Federation also arrested many people for publishing politically-scented children’s picture books and accused of publishing “sedition publications.”