Hong Kong officials today banned a group of democracy activists from holding a demonstration on October 1, the anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China.
In China, the day is a holiday and marked by carefully choreographed celebrations, but in Hong Kong it has become a day of concern in view of Beijing’s increased control over the territory.
“The police opposed the demonstration under the guise of public health, security and protection of people’s freedom rights,” the police chief told reporters today.
The request for authorization for the demonstration was made by the Civic Human Rights Front (CHRF), which organized the main pro-democracy protests last year, to demand the release of a group of 12 Hong Kong residents detained in China.
Hong Kong police will mobilize on October 1, with at least 3,000 police available in the event of a demonstration, said a police source, who requested anonymity, from the French agency France-Presse.
Since the beginning of the year, protests have been almost impossible to carry out in Hong Kong, as the police have refused all requests for authorization, citing the ban on any meeting of more than four people within the measures in the fight against covid-19.
Since June, the new security law adopted in Hong Kong has allowed authorities to criminalize the expression of certain opinions.
During the rare demonstrations that took place, riot police and plainclothes police intervened quickly, in a single day in September almost 300 people were arrested.
More than 10,000 people have been arrested in the past 16 months and many opposition leaders are being pursued in court.
