- Hong Kong police raided the exhibition at the Tiananmen Square Museum.
- They confiscated many exhibits from the 1989 crackdown.
- The National Security Law targets members of the Hong Kong Alliance.
On Thursday, Hong Kong security police raided the museum, which contained exhibits commemorating Beijing’s deadly crackdown on Tiananmen Square in 1989. One day later, they arrested four members of the venue.
On Thursday morning, the city’s newly formed National Security Police entered the closed June 4 museum to search and block the entrance to the building.
Read | Hong Kong police arrested the organizer of Tiananmen Square night vigil
In the afternoon, officials moved out a number of exhibits, including a huge museum logo, a paper model of the goddess of democracy-a symbol of the Beijing democracy movement in 1989-a photo of the Union Candlelight Vigil held in Hong Kong every year, and at least 36 boxes of materials from the museum to truck.
The Hong Kong Alliance is the latest goal of a comprehensive national security law that China has imposed on the city in 2020, with the aim of suppressing dissent after large-scale and often violent democratic protests.
A day ago, the security police arrested Zhou Hengdong, the vice chairman of the coalition, and three other leaders on charges of “not providing information” under the National Security Law.
At present, these four people have been detained for investigation.
Financial and operational details
In August, the police ordered the organization to hand over financial and operational details, accusing it of working as a “foreign agent”.
The request includes the personal details of all members since its establishment in 1989, all meeting minutes, financial records, and any exchanges with other non-governmental organizations that promote democracy and human rights in China.
On Tuesday, the day when the information handover deadline was reached, members of the coalition submitted a letter to the police stating that the request was illegal and arbitrary, and did not provide any evidence of their misconduct.
When the police raided the museum on Thursday, 12 pro-democracy activists, including the coalition’s vice chairman Albert Ho, pleaded guilty to charges of inciting and joining an unauthorized gathering at the candlelight vigil on June 4, 2020, since 1990 The first gathering has been banned by the authorities since. .
He said in his mitigation speech that he rejected allegations that they were foreign agents, saying that the coalition was formed by local democratic groups that support Beijing’s democracy protesters.
“Why Hong Kong, and then a British colony thousands of miles away from the periphery of the country, participated so much in the 1989 democracy movement?” He said.
“The answer is simple and straightforward: Hong Kong people who are about to reunite with their motherland do have the desire to become a free and democratic country.”
Do you know you can listen to the article? Subscribe to news 24 Access this exciting feature and more.
