BREAKING: Gov’t bid to ban ‘Glory to Hong Kong’ protest song approved by appeals court
Hong Kong Free Press
A Hong Kong appeals court has sided with the government in its attempt to ban protest song Glory to Hong Kong, overturning last year’s decision by a lower court that cited free speech concerns.
Three Court of Appeal judges handed down the judgement on Wednesday. It comes almost a year after the government said it was seeking an injunction that would effectively criminalise acts of performance that involved illegal intentions.
See also: Explainer: Why, and how, the gov’t wants to ban protest song ‘Glory to Hong Kong’
Authorities said the song – affiliated with the 2019 protests and unrest – has been “mistakenly presented… repeatedly” as the city’s anthem. They were referring to a string of mix-ups at international sporting events that saw Glory to Hong Kong played instead of China’s anthem, March of the Volunteers.
Last July, the High Court rejected the government’s bid, saying the move could have a “chilling effect” on free speech. But the authorities were given a chance to challenge the court’s decision.
During the appeal, a lawyer representing the government cited an interview the song’s composer gave, in which he called the song a “weapon” he contributed to the 2019 protests.
“The song is regarded by the composer himself as a weapon,” Senior Counsel Benjamin Yu said in December.
Despite the implementation of the national security law, Glory to Hong Kong remained prevalent and continued to “arouse emotions.” It was mistaken as Hong Kong’s national anthem more than 800 times, Yu said citing an estimation by the police.
Protests erupted in June 2019 over a since-axed extradition bill. They escalated into sometimes violent displays of dissent against police behaviour, amid calls for democracy and anger over Beijing’s encroachment. Demonstrators demanded an independent probe into police conduct, amnesty for those arrested and a halt to the characterisation of protests as “riots.”
Anthem blunders
Composed by protesters, with lyrics co-written by users of online forum LIHKG, the song was released on YouTube in August 2019. It includes the slogan “liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times,” a common refrain chanted by protestors during the unrest.
The slogan has since been ruled as capable of inciting secession, according to the judges who presided over the city’s first national security trial in 2021. Secession is an offence under the Beijing-imposed national security law, which can see offenders jailed for life.
From late 2022 to early 2023, with international sporting events restarting after pandemic restrictions eased globally, the city saw at least five incidents in which Glory to Hong Kong was confused with China’s national anthem. The mistakes prompted local police to investigate.
The first known case was a mix-up at South Korea’s Rugby Sevens in November 2022, when the protest song was played instead of China’s March of the Volunteers. Organisers had reportedly downloaded the top song listed when searching online for the city’s anthem.
Hong Kong authorities then asked Google to remove Glory to Hong Kong from the results and pin the correct information at the top of the page, with Chief Executive John Lee saying that the search engine has a “moral obligation” to comply.
Last July, after the government launched the injunction bid, the city’s Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry Sun Dong said Google had not acceded to the request. Google said it needed evidence to prove the song violated local laws, Dong added.
The government eventually produced an official webpage clarifying the issue, which rose in search engine rankings.
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