Hong Kong Watch commemorates Tiananmen Square massacre

On the 36th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre in Beijing on 4 June 1989, Hong Kong Watch stands in solidarity with Hong Kong pro-democracy activists and dissidents from across China in commemorating the tragedy.

The date 4 June has long held special significance in Hong Kong, as the city was the one place under the sovereignty of the People’s Republic of China where the Tiananmen Square massacre could be publicly commemorated, with a yearly candlelit vigil in Victoria Park and prayer vigils in churches across Hong Kong.

However, since the imposition of the 2020 National Security Law on Hong Kong by Beijing, such acts of peaceful commemoration have been criminalised. In 2020, the annual Victoria Park vigil was prohibited and its organisers were arrested. In 2023, 23 individuals were detained on suspicion of ‘breaching the peace’ for actions such as holding flowers and small LED candles, or wearing clothing referencing the date of the massacre. 

Following the passing of the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance (SNSO), commonly referred to as Article 23, last year, the situation in Hong Kong has become even more repressive. Last year, five women and one man were arrested for allegedly committing offences in connection with seditious intention under section 24 of the SNSO, for sharing social media posts concerning a ‘sensitive’ date. 

Last year, Hong Kong police also detained a performance artist after he appeared to write “8964” in the air with his hand, a reference to the date of the Tiananmen Square massacre, outside Causeway Bay station. This year, one day before the anniversary, plainclothes police stopped and searched performance artist Chan Mei-tung without any apparent provocation. 

Lord Patten of Barnes, the last Governor of Hong Kong and Patron of Hong Kong Watch, said: 

“Hong Kong, which for many years maintained an open society in which incidents such as Tiananmen could be freely discussed, is now firmly in the grip of a paranoid police state which cannot abide even the mildest sign of dissent or criticism. 

“No matter how hard the Hong Kong state seeks to crack down on commemoration of 4 June, and no matter how hard it tries to drown out commemoration of the date with pro-Communist Party ‘patriotic’ propaganda, the truth remains. It is incumbent on all of us, in free societies around the world, to commemorate the tragedy of Tiananmen Square on behalf of those who are suppressed from doing so.” 

「六四」36週年｜政權大力打壓異己、掩蓋真相 自由社會要堅持薪火相傳

踏入1989年6月4日北京天安門廣場大屠殺36週年，香港監察與香港民運人士及中國異見人士站在同一陣線，一起悼念這場悲劇。

最後一任香港總督、香港監察贊助人彭定康勳爵（Lord Patten of Barnes）表示：

「香港多年來一直是容許自由討論天安門等事件的開放社會，如今卻處於多疑偏執警察城市的牢牢掌控下，連最溫和的異議或批評都容不下。

無論香港政府有多大力打壓『六四』悼念活動，無論港府有多努力用親共『愛國』文宣來掩蓋這個日子，真相依然存在。我們所有身處世界各地自由社會的人都有責任代表被打壓的人，悼念天安門廣場悲劇。」