Hong Kong bans Tiananmen Square massacre annual event

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ANKARA (AA) – For the second consecutive year, Hong Kong authorities banned the commemoration of Tiananmen Square massacre in the semi-autonomous region, local media reported Thursday.

The event to remember victims of the 1989 massacre in Beijing is held every year on June 4.

However, state-run RTHK News reported that the authorities under China’s semi-autonomous region have barred people from holding the candlelight vigil at Victoria Park next month.

Hundreds of Hong Kongers would normally gather at the park to commemorate the victims.

The 1989 protests started on April 15 and were forcibly suppressed on June 4 when the Chinese government sent the military to gain control of Tiananmen Square. Nearly 300 people died and 7,000 were injured, including soldiers.

Last year, Hong Kong police had banned the event for the first time citing the raging COVID-19 pandemic. However, many people defied the ban and attended the event which resulted in police action against several prominent figures.

The Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, which organizes the event, has urged the Hong Kong police to allow the event.

The alliance members said, if allowed, the participants will follow social distancing measures.

They held a meeting on Tuesday with the police officials regarding the event.

Ban on such events comes after China imposed the controversial national security law in the region last July, triggering massive backlash from the western capitals.

The law was imposed after Hong Kong was rocked by anti-government protests in 2019 in response to the now-banned extradition bill.