Hong Kong must guard against “destructive forces engaging in soft resistance,” Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee (李家超) said yesterday, as the territory marked the 26th anniversary of its handover from British to Chinese rule.
Britain ceded the long-time colony to China in 1997 under a 50-year governance model known as “one country, two systems,” which guaranteed key freedoms and a measure of autonomy. These rights — such as the freedom of assembly — set Hong Kong apart from the mainland, and July 1 was once a day of demonstrations for the territory’s outspoken civil society.
However, following huge and sometimes violent democracy protests in 2019, China imposed a sweeping National Security Law that — when combined with legal changes putting “patriots” in charge — effectively stamped out most forms of dissent from Hong Kong life.
Photo: AFP
Ex-security chief turned leader Lee said that Hong Kong was “largely stable” now, but was still being targeted by countries that oppose China’s rise.
“There are also destructive forces engaging in soft resistance hidden within Hong Kong,” he said during a speech at an event marking the anniversary. “Therefore, we must remain alert and take the initiative ourselves to protect national security.”
The quiet streets of Hong Kong yesterday were a far cry from previous years, when hundreds of thousands of residents would march to air their political and social grievances.
Police said they received no applications for public processions for yesterday.
Local media reported that more than 6,000 police officers were deployed around the territory to ensure order.
Five activists said that they were “reminded” by authorities not to stage any protests yesterday or in the lead-up to the anniversary.
An elderly man who held a placard in the Causeway Bay shopping district calling for the release of political prisoners was quickly surrounded by police and escorted away yesterday afternoon.
“I would feel uncomfortable if I hadn’t come out” to protest, he told reporters.
A Japanese journalist was barred from entering Hong Kong without a clear reason and was sent back to his country, the English-language Japan Times reported on Friday.
The newspaper said that a freelance journalist was taken by officials to a room after arriving at the territory’s airport on Thursday evening.
Yoshiaki Ogawa, known for his coverage in Hong Kong, was later interviewed for about an hour, it said.
Ogawa said officials only told him that he could not be granted permission to stay in Hong Kong and was sent back to Tokyo on Friday, the report said.
It “truly made me feel how Hong Kong has changed ... this would have been unthinkable before,” Ogawa was quoted as saying in the report.
Additional reporting by AP
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