Democracy books disappear from Hong Kong libraries

The First Art Newspaper on the Net    Established in 1996 Tuesday, March 19, 2024


Democracy books disappear from Hong Kong libraries
A women looks at books in a public library in Hong Kong on July 4, 2020. Books written by prominent Hong Kong democracy activists have started to disappear from the city's libraries, online records show, days after Beijing imposed a draconian national security law on the finance hub. ISAAC LAWRENCE / AFP.



HONG KONG (AFP).- Books written by prominent Hong Kong democracy activists have started to disappear from the city's libraries, online records show, days after Beijing imposed a draconian national security law on the finance hub.

Among the authors whose titles are no longer available are Joshua Wong, one of the city's most prominent young activists, and Tanya Chan, a well known pro-democracy lawmaker.

Beijing's new national security law was imposed on Tuesday and is the most radical shift in how the semi-autonomous city is run since it was handed back to China by Britain in 1997.

China's authoritarian leaders say the powers will restore stability after a year of pro-democracy protests, will not stifle freedoms and will only target a "very small minority".

But it has already sent fear coursing through a city used to speaking openly, with police arresting people for possessing slogans pushing independence or greater autonomy and businesses scrambling to remove protest displays.

Wong said he believed the removal of the books was sparked by the security law.

"White terror continues to spread, the national security law is fundamentally a tool to incriminate speech," he wrote on Facebook, using a phrase that refers to political persecution.

Searches on the public library website showed at least three titles by Wong, Chan and local scholar Chin Wan are no longer available for lending at any of dozens of outlets across the city.

An AFP reporter was unable to find the titles at a public library in the district of Wong Tai Sin on Saturday afternoon.

The city's Leisure and Cultural Services Department, which runs libraries, said books had been removed while it is determined whether they violate the national security law.




"In the process of the review the books will not be available for borrowing and reference,” it said.

The law targets acts of subversion, secession, terrorism and colluding with foreign forces.

China says it will have jurisdiction in some cases and empowered its security apparatus to set up shop openly in Hong Kong for the first time, ending the legal firewall between the two.

Rights groups and legal analysts say the broad wording of the law -- which was kept secret until it was enacted -- outlaws certain political views, even if expressed peacefully.

Any promotion of independence or greater autonomy appears to be banned by the legislation. Another vaguely worded provision bans inciting hatred towards the Chinese or Hong Kong government.

On the authoritarian mainland, similar national security laws are routinely used to crush dissent.

The new security law and the removal of books raises questions of whether academic freedom still exists.

Hong Kong has some of Asia's best universities and a campus culture where topics that would be taboo on the mainland are still discussed and written about.

But Beijing has made clear it wants education in the city to become more "patriotic" especially after a year of huge, often violent and largely youth-led pro-democracy protests.


© Agence France-Presse










Today's News

July 5, 2020

Paris Louvre museum reopens Monday after crippling losses

New and recent work by Marcel Dzama on view at David Zwirner's gallery in Paris

France returns skulls of Algerians who fought colonisation

In Canada, art lovers head to drive-in for safe Van Gogh show

Unseen collection of European Avant-Garde art to make auction debut

New book offers a journey through Vincent van Gogh's favourite authors and illustrators

Duchess Goldblatt is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside a Twitter account

UK film pioneer Earl Cameron dies aged 102

The exhibition 18th century - Sweden and Europe opens at Nationalmuseum Jamtli

UK historian quits Cambridge over slavery claim

Custodians for Covid: Photography prints sold to support London theatres

From the photographic act to the possibilities of presentation: The fundamental conditions of photography in new book

Democracy books disappear from Hong Kong libraries

House of Spirits sign saved from vandalism for future generations of Echo Park residents

Marc Fumaroli, defender of French culture, is dead at 88

Art reopens King's Cross: Andy Leek lands 3 month artistic residency to welcome back visitors

Shortlist announced for 2020 Film London Jarman Award

Galerie Thaddaeus Ropac opens Marc Brandenburg's exhibition Snowflake

Movie posters never seen or sold, from Frankenstein to Sunrise, star in Heritage Auctions' July 25-26 event

'Liberty Bell' tolls for sites where history is alive and kicking

Rudolfo Anaya, a father of Chicano literature, dies at 82

Exhibition features selected works from 20 years of Galerie Priska Pasquer

New site-specific work by Lita Albuquerque on view at The Huntington

Magnum Photos announces new nominees, associates and life-long members

Everything You Need To Know About ED Drugs In A Nutshell

WoW boosting service and BFA-2020 updated




Museums, Exhibits, Artists, Milestones, Digital Art, Architecture, Photography,
Photographers, Special Photos, Special Reports, Featured Stories, Auctions, Art Fairs,
Anecdotes, Art Quiz, Education, Mythology, 3D Images, Last Week, .

 



Founder:
Ignacio Villarreal
(1941 - 2019)
Editor & Publisher: Jose Villarreal
Art Director: Juan José Sepúlveda Ramírez

sa gaming free credit
Attorneys
Truck Accident Attorneys
Accident Attorneys

Royalville Communications, Inc
produces:

ignaciovillarreal.org juncodelavega.com facundocabral-elfinal.org
Founder's Site. Hommage
to a Mexican poet.
Hommage
       

The First Art Newspaper on the Net. The Best Versions Of Ave Maria Song Junco de la Vega Site Ignacio Villarreal Site Parroquia Natividad del Señor
Tell a Friend
Dear User, please complete the form below in order to recommend the Artdaily newsletter to someone you know.
Please complete all fields marked *.
Sending Mail
Sending Successful