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Hong Kong authorities have warned the public not to 'test police' amid online posts calling people to take part in an assembly on the anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre on Saturday.
Addressing a media briefing on Thursday, a Hong Kong police spokesperson said "it is perfectly fine" for people with a "genuine" leisure purpose to enter the park but warned against "unauthorized assembly". "But however, as I have to stress, even though you are alone, and then coming to Victoria Park... if you are staying together with a group of people, at the same place, at the same time, with a common purpose, to express certain views, it is already meeting the definition of a meeting. And depending on the number of persons at the scene, that may contravene offences including unauthorised assembly or due to the acts, may also contravene other more serious offences," Hong Kong Free Press quoted Senior Superintendent Liauw Ka-kei as saying. Senior officers have said police action would be "proportionate," and warned people not to "test" officers. "Try not to test the boundaries...as well as testing the determination or our commitment in enforcing the law in this operation." Hong Kong will not host an official memorial for the victims of the Tiananmen crackdown in 1989 for the first time, as the city's national security law takes full effect. Over the past year, Hong Kong authorities have arrested and prosecuted people for trying to commemorate the Tiananmen Massacre. Twenty-six pro-democracy activists - including Joshua Wong, media mogul Jimmy Lai, journalist Gwyneth Ho, and former legislators Leung Kwok-hung, Cyd Ho, and Andrew Wan - were arrested for participating or "inciting" others to participate in the 2020 vigil honoring massacre victims. They received suspended sentences or prison terms of between 4 and 14 months. The Tiananmen Massacre was precipitated by the peaceful gatherings of students, workers, and others in Beijing's Tiananmen Square and other Chinese cities in April 1989, calling for freedom of expression, accountability, and an end to corruption. The government responded to the intensifying protests in late May 1989 by declaring martial law. On June 3 and 4, the People's Liberation Army (PLA) soldiers fired upon and killed untold numbers of peaceful protesters and bystanders. In Beijing, some citizens attacked army convoys and burned vehicles in response to the military's violence. Following the killings, the government carried out a nationwide crackdown and arrested thousands of people on "counter-revolution" and other criminal charges, including arson and disrupting social order. The government has never accepted responsibility for the massacre or held any officials legally accountable for the killings. (ANI)
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