Tag: Hong Kong Protests (2019)

What to Know About Hong Kong’s Article 23 Legislation

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Hong Kong passed national security legislation on Tuesday, giving officials in the Chinese territory more power to curb dissent, 21 years after mass protests forced the government to backtrack on a plan to introduce such laws. The legislation targets political offenses like treason and insurrection with penalties as harsh as life imprisonment and expands the scope of what can be considered criminal behavior. Local officials have said it will close gaps in a security law that China’s government imposed on the territory in 2020 after months of huge antigovernment protests.…

Hong Kong Democracy Figure Jimmy Lai Stands Trial After Long Delay

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Unlike other Hong Kong tycoons who were careful not to provoke China’s leaders, Jimmy Lai had long been a proud rebel. He founded a newspaper with a decidedly anti-Beijing slant. He was a prominent face at massive pro-democracy protests. He lobbied American officials to protest the city’s declining autonomy. Then, in 2020, Mr. Lai was arrested, becoming one of the first prominent targets of a national security law imposed by Beijing to crush the opposition. On Monday, after three years in prison and unusually lengthy procedural delays, Mr. Lai was…

Judge Rejects Hong Kong’s Bid to Ban Pro-Democracy Song From Internet

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The Hong Kong authorities suffered a surprising setback on Friday when a judge denied their request to ban a popular pro-democracy song from the internet. The government was seeking an injunction that could have given it the power to force Google and other tech companies to restrict access to the song. Since coming under the tighter grip of Beijing several years ago, Hong Kong has jailed political opponents, quashed street protest and shuttered pro-democracy newspapers. But the internet, unlike in mainland China, has remained largely free of government control. At…

“Glory to Hong Kong” Injunction Ruling Will Be Made Next Week

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A Hong Kong judge said on Friday that he would rule next week on a government request to ban a popular pro-democracy song from the internet, in a case that could force Google and other companies to restrict access to the song. At issue is “Glory to Hong Kong,” which was the anthem of the 2019 protests that ended with Beijing taking tighter control over Hong Kong. The authorities argue that the song is an insult to China’s national anthem and could make people believe that Hong Kong is an…

Hong Kong Asks Court to Stop Protest Anthem From Circulating Online

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After “Glory to Hong Kong” emerged as the unofficial anthem of pro-democracy demonstrators in 2019, the government of Hong Kong has tried to stifle its use. It has banned the song from schools. When it was played in error last year instead of the Chinese national anthem at a rugby match in South Korea, the Hong Kong government demanded an investigation. This week the authorities asked a court to ban the public performance and online dissemination of “Glory to Hong Kong.” The move could ensnare U.S. technology companies like Google…

Hong Kong Remembered June 4 Tiananmen Massacre, Until It Couldn’t

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For decades, Hong Kong was the only place in China where the victims of the 1989 military crackdown on pro-democracy activists at Tiananmen Square in Beijing could be publicly mourned in a candlelight vigil. This year, Hong Kong is notable for all the ways it is being made to forget the 1989 massacre. In the days preceding the June 4 anniversary on Sunday, even small shops that displayed items alluding to the crackdown were closely monitored, receiving multiple visits from the police. Over the weekend, thousands of officers patrolled the…

The 47 Pro-Democracy Figures in Hong Kong’s Largest National Security Trial

Chin@Strategy

Forty-seven pro-democracy figures in Hong Kong have been accused of a conspiracy to commit subversion in a landmark political case. Many of the defendants have been in jail for nearly two years while awaiting trial. The case highlights the sweeping power of a national security law China imposed to tighten its grip on the city after massive anti-government protests. These are the politicians, academics and activists who are now facing prison sentences. Benny Tai, 58, was a professor of law at the University of Hong Kong. Benny Tai, 58 Joshua…

In Hong Kong, 47 Democracy Leaders on Trial for Security Charges

Chin@Strategy

The political candidates represented the vanguard of Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement. Numbering in the dozens, they had planned to run for the city’s legislature in 2020, after months of turbulent protests calling for greater freedom from China. By the time the election was held, more than a year later, none of the candidates could run. Most were in jail, where many still languish today, charged with subversion in the largest case yet involving the national security law Beijing imposed on the city in 2020. Their arrests laid bare the lengths…

What to Know About the ‘Hong Kong 47’ Trial and the National Security Law

Chin@Strategy

Vaguely worded and broad in scope, the law was crafted and enacted from Beijing. It quickly transformed life in Hong Kong. Boisterous demonstrations all but disappeared. Newsrooms were raided and shuttered. Labor unions, pro-democracy coalitions and other civil society groups disbanded, one after another. Chinese officials have used the national security law, as it is called, to crack down on dissent in Hong Kong, essentially discarding the “one country, two systems” pledge that guaranteed the city a high degree of autonomy after Britain gave it back to China. In the…

In China, Luxury Shopping Faces Ongoing Headwinds

Chin@Strategy

This article is part of our special section on the DealBook Summit that included business and policy leaders from around the world. Toward the end of 2021, a glittering luxury shopping center called Taikoo Li Qiantan opened its doors in Shanghai. The 120,000-square-meter center (the equivalent to a stretch of 17 soccer pitches) is made up of nine buildings, landscaped gardens and stores from Western brands such as Balenciaga, Bulgari, Cartier, Gucci, Hermès and Tiffany & Company. The expectation for this colossal state-of-the-art mall in China’s commercial capital, owned by…