Hong Kong police issues warning over Tiananmen Square anniversary gatherings

The Tiananmen Square crackdown is a sore subject for the Chinese government. The 1989 incident, which saw China sending troops and tanks against peaceful protestors, is not discussed in China and the authorities have made sure that the crackdown even extends to the internet. On the other hand, Hong Kong has been organising an annual vigil on June 4 at Victoria Park to mark the occasion but this time, it seems that the tradition will be broken. The Hong Kong police has said that people will not be permitted to gather on the anniversary of the Tiananmen Square event on Saturday.

While the previous administrations did not have a problem with annual vigil, the authorities have banned the gatherings for the last two years with the pandemic being shown as the reason.

Add WION as a Preferred Source

However, this year, the orders are more direct. The police made it clear that any gathering will be treated as a breach of law and action will be taken against all the involved individuals.

“When there are other people there, and you share a common goal to express some appeals, that’s already sufficient to make you a member of an unlawful assembly,” said senior superintendent Liauw Ka-kei according to an AFP report.

“If that person makes us feel that his or her purpose of appearance is to incite others, we of course will search for evidence,” he added.

The decision was taken as part of the strict security laws which were implemented in 2020 and since then, a number of activists and journalists have been jailed by the Hong Kong authorities.