In Pictures: Tiananmen crackdown commemorations foiled by large Hong Kong police deployment
Hong Kong Free Press
Hong Kong saw a large police deployment on the 35th anniversary of the Tiananmen crackdown on Tuesday, with several people detained around Causeway Bay.
Officers were stationed across the shopping district near Victoria Park, which once hosted remembrance vigils attended by tens of thousands of people. An armoured vehicle was also spotted near SOGO mall, as part of an apparent operation to thwart commemorative activity.
Officers were seen on Great George Street ordering passers-by to keep moving, as dozens of reporters and photographers arrived nearer dusk.
Earlier on Tuesday, Chief Executive John Lee did not directly address whether there were legal ways to commemorate the crackdown on June 4, 1989, when hundreds, perhaps thousands, were killed as the People’s Liberation Army dispersed protesters in Beijing, following months of student-led demonstrations.
On Tuesday afternoon, an elderly man was seen displaying hand-written posters relating to democracy and the crackdown. One placard, titled “Two Shores, Three Territories,” included a list of social movements dating back to 1919, from the May Fourth movement to the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown, the Umbrella Movement and Taiwan’s Sunflower Movement in 2014, and Hong Kong’s 2019 protests.
He was taken away by police, according to The Collective, but later released.
ReNews also reported on Thursday that elderly democracy activist Alexandra Wong had been surrounded by police and taken to a police vehicle after she shouted “people will not forget,” near Causeway Bay MTR station at around 3 pm.
Nearer to Victoria Park, an HKFP reporter saw police stopping a man dressed in black, before releasing him, whilst a woman wearing sunglasses was taken away in a police van opposite SOGO mall at around 5.40 pm.
HKFP also witnessed security guards surround a young man wearing a black shirt, shielding him from view with five or six umbrellas. The man was heard calling for help, telling HKFP: “[The security guards] said I had a book about Xi Jinping’s governance of China. They said it was against the rules.”
2/ Security guards surrounded the young man, covering him with five or six umbrellas. The man was heard calling for help, telling HKFP: “They said I had a book about Xi Jinping’s governance of China. They said it was against the rules.”
Video: Irene Chan/HKFP. pic.twitter.com/l6vHCj2b5p
— Hong Kong Free Press HKFP (@hkfp) June 4, 2024
Police stopped and searched a woman whose mobile phone had its torch function turned on. Officers asked her where she was going, and she told them she was in Causeway Bay to eat ramen.
A member of staff from the Consulate General of France in Hong Kong & Macau arrived in Causeway Bay at around 7 pm. He was swarmed by journalists as he passed by SOGO mall, but did not make any statement.
At around 7.30 pm, officers from the police media liaison unit began to ask journalists on Great George Street which publication they worked for and marked down the number of journalists from each outlet.
‘Sensitive date’
Several arrests took place ahead of the anniversary. National security police invoked Hong Kong’s new security law to arrest eight people over the past week on suspicion of posting “seditious” messages, “utilising an upcoming sensitive date.”
Jailed activist Chow Hang-tung, who used to organise the annual candlelight vigils, was among those are arrested.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday morning, Lee said: “There are still forces in Hong Kong trying to damage stability and national security… we should be careful of people who hijack and make use of the issue to cause trouble.”
See also: Ex-local councillor asked by police about Tiananmen crackdown anniversary plans
“Different people may use different excuses to hide their intentions… It’s important we all bear that in mind to be on guard all the time against attempts to cause trouble to Hong Kong, particularly disturbing public peace,” he added.
Patriotic carnival
The city used to be one of the few places on Chinese soil where annual vigils were held to commemorate the crackdown. But police banned the Victoria Park gathering for the first time in 2020 citing Covid-19 restrictions, and imposed the same ban in 2021.
No official commemoration has been held since the vigil organiser, the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, disbanded in September 2021. Currently occupying Victoria Park is a five-day patriotic carnival organised by 28 pro-Beijing groups.
The city has nevertheless seen other commemorative efforts this week.
On Tuesday, the British Embassy in Beijing posted an animated video on social media showing the front page of China’s state-run People’s Daily on June 4, 1989, before it gradually turned blank. “35 years ago, peaceful protests in and around Tiananmen Square ended in tragedy. Some people are trying to erase those events from history and memory. Today we remember,” the embassy said on X, formerly Twitter.
The Australian and Canadian consulates also posted messages on social media. Meanwhile, the US consulate in Hong Kong displayed commemorative candles in their windows on Tuesday evening – a recent tradition which has irked the local and national authorities.
In Mong Kok, ex-district councillor Derek Chu displayed candles at his shop on Tuesday. “Though the candlelight is small, it reflects the conscience of the human heart,” he wrote in a Facebook post. “Remember the victims of the 4 June incident, remember the Tiananmen Mothers and other refugees, whether on earth or in heaven.”
InMedia reported that 15 plainclothes police officers visited Chu’s shop about an hour after it opened. They stayed for around 15 minutes and after they left, all the candles had disappeared. Reporters asked if the officers were from the national security department and whether the candles had been removed on their orders, but Chu said he could not disclose.
And, on Monday evening, artist Sanmu Chan was briefly detained by police after apparently drawing the Chinese characters for “8964” – referring to the date of the crackdown – in the air as he stood alone on a street in Causeway Bay.
Support HKFP | Policies & Ethics | Error/typo? | Contact Us | Newsletter | Transparency & Annual Report | Apps
Help safeguard press freedom & keep HKFP free for all readers by supporting our team
HKFP has an impartial stance, transparent funding, and balanced coverage guided by an Ethics Code and Corrections Policy.
Support press freedom & help us surpass 1,000 monthly Patrons: 100% independent, governed by an ethics code & not-for-profit.