Hong Kong: Police Monitor First Authorized Protest Since 2020

Facts

• On Sunday, a group of 100 people staged Hong Kong's first authorized protest since Beijing enacted a sweeping national security law in 2020.¹
• Under a heavy police presence, protestors marched against a proposed land reclamation and garbage processing project in the eastern district of Tseung Kwan O.²
• Participants carried security-approved banners wearing numbered badges around their necks. They were reportedly warned against wearing black clothes and masks as well as chanting seditious slogans.³
• In its response to the protest, the city's Development Bureau said the project meets the needs of the community, but it would "respect the right to freedom of expression" and consider reducing the scope of land reclamation activities.⁴
• Hong Kong's mini-constitution guarantees the right to public assembly. However, after China imposed a national security law to curb the months-long pro-democracy protests in 2019 and "bring stability to the city," Hong Kong's freedom of assembly was curtailed.¹
• Under the law, more than 200 individuals, including children and civil rights activists, have been arrested in the first two years of its implementation. Many others have fled the city to avoid prosecution.⁵

Sources: ¹BBC News, ²CBS, ³DW, ⁴Al Jazeera, and ⁵UN News.

Narratives

• Anti-China narrative, as provided by Hong Kong Free Press. Hong Kong's national security law was designed to squash dissent, weaken the region's autonomy within the PRC, and erode the residents' right to freedom and expression. Hong Kong is a signatory to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and is under obligation to keep human rights prioritized. The draconian law was passed without consultation with Hong Kong's public and must be immediately repealed.
• Pro-China narrative, as provided by OCTSYOUTH. The national security law is consistent with Hong Kong's mini-constitution. It guarantees and protects Hong Kong residents' freedom of speech and peaceful assembly. The 2019 protests caused severe threats to law and order as well as lives and properties and plunged Asia's world city into a cauldron of tyranny. Due to Beijing's actions — and Beijing is ultimately responsible for Hong Kong's security — peace, public safety, and business confidence have returned to Hong Kong.

Predictions