Seventh people arrested under new security law for Tiananmen posts

Hong Kong police arrested a seventh person on Wednesday under its new security law in relation to social media posts about commemorating Beijing’s 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown.

The latest arrest comes after an EU spokesperson said law enforcement actions suggest the new legislation “is used to stifle freedom of expression”.

Authorities said the 53-year-old woman taken in was suspected of “offences in connection with seditious intention”, following the arrests of six people under the same offence a day earlier. All seven are in police custody and part of the same case.

Hong Kong’s security chief Chris Tang Ping-keung on Tuesday identified one of those arrested as Tonyee Chow Hang-tung, a prominent activist who led the now-disbanded group that once organised annual vigils to mark the Tiananmen Square crackdown.

The group of seven are the first people to be arrested under the “Safeguarding National Security Ordinance” – commonly referred to as Article 23 – which Hong Kong enacted in March and penalizes sedition with up to seven years in prison.

“The enforcement action is still ongoing and the possibility of further arrests is not ruled out,” the National Security Department of the Hong Kong Police said Wednesday.

Before Wednesday’s arrest, a spokesperson for the European Union said the law enforcement action “seem to confirm the EU’s concerns about the new law and its effect on the rights and freedoms of the people of Hong Kong”.

“While we need to assess the details of the individual cases, the arrests suggest that the new law is used to stifle freedom of expression of the people of Hong Kong.”

The EU “calls on the Hong Kong authorities to protect the ability of the people of Hong Kong to exercise their rights and freedoms,” the spokesperson said.

Passed by an opposition-free legislature, Article 23 became Hong Kong’s second national security law, following a Beijing-imposed security law that came into effect in 2020.

The United States, the European Union, Japan and Britain have been among Article 23’s strongest critics.

Responding to the EU statement, the Hong Kong government said it disapproved of and condemned “all baseless allegations” against the new law and said that laws against sedition do not hinder “legitimate expression of opinions”.

Sedition offences are “very serious crimes, and no jurisdictions, including those from the EU, will watch with folded arms acts and activities that endanger national security”, a government spokesperson said.

Chow is already serving a more than 30-month jail sentence over other charges, including “unauthorized assembly” for her attempt to publicly commemorate June 4.

She and two other leaders of the group who organized vigils are awaiting trial for another national security case, where they are accused of “incitement to subversion”.

Authorities connected Chow’s latest arrest to a Facebook page called “Chow Hang-tung Club”, which in recent weeks has called on the public to write about their experiences related to Tiananmen vigils.

“We hope that all Hongkongers worldwide… who have participated in the candlelight vigils over the past 30 years will write testimonies together,” one post read.

The vigil, which once drew tens of thousands to Hong Kong’s Victoria Park, has been banned since 2020.

Asked whether it was still legal to mourn Tiananmen, Hong Kong’s security chief Chris Tang said Tuesday the key was not the date itself, but “utilizing the subject” to incite hatred against the government.