Hong Kongers to hold anti-Beijing march today
Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China plans to march today ahead of a vigil commemorating the Tiananmen Square massacre next week.
Citing previous Tiananmen vigils as opportunities for participants to “defame and slander the central government, incite subversion, and disturb the harmony in society,” police addressed the Alliance with an objection letter prohibiting them from holding the two events. Last year’s vigil was banned, but some Hong Kongers took to the streets nevertheless. Twenty four pro-democracy activists were arrested four received jail time earlier this month.
Although Hong Kong police have yet to state that the march and vigil would violate the new National Security Law, the verbiage in their objection letter indicates that this is so.
If pro-democracy activists participate in today’s march, the leaders of the movement will likely be detained. Beijing will use this opportunity to eradicate the pro-democracy movement. As Hong Kong’s internal issues are considered as matters of domestic Chinese policy, the international community has little recourse to support the pro-democracy protestors. In the medium-term, China will likely pursue additional legislation, such as the recent changes to Hong Kong’s electoral system, which will further limit democratic participation in Hong Kong politics.
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