#FirstHand #June9
#LocalYouthWill Organizes #Exhibition to Pass On Memories of #HongKongProtests: "When there is light, there are people"

Photos:
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/30046

"Local Youth Will" is a pro-democracy concern group recently established by former cabinet member of the now-dissolved students' union of the Chinese University of Hong Kong (#CUHK), Law Tsz Wai; external affairs vice-president of the current students' union of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (#PolyU), Cheung Sum-yee; and former spokeperson of #StudentPoliticism, Chu Wai-ying.

The group organized their inaugural event on June 9, 2021. On the day two years ago, over 1 million Hongkongers took it to the street to protest against the government's plan to implement extration to China.

In the exhibition they are organizing in 2021, Local Youth Will aims to give voices to the detained, jailed and exiled pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong.

At a gallery called Parallel Space located in Shum Shui Po, photos, banners and art installations relating to the pro-democracy movement are displayed.

The group hopes that the memories of the #AntiELAB movement can be passed on, despite the authorities' incessant attempts to alter history.

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About the Exhibition:

"Walk-Through: 730 Days After June 9th"

Dates: 9 - 21 June, 2021

Time: 2 – 8pm (Mon - Fri); 11am – 8 pm (Sat and Sun)

Venue: Parallel Space, 20 Tai Nam Street, Shum Shui Po

Booking needed: https://bit.ly/3ga982f

 #FightForFreedom #HongKongYouth #Memories

#NeverForget #2Years
Lest We Forget: The Tearful Day Outside the #LegCo Building

June 12, 2021 marks the two year-mark of the first large-scale police-civilian clash in the #AntiELAB movement in Hong Kong.

Two years ago, pro-democracy Hongkongers surrounded the Legislative Council building, with a hope to prevent the second reading of the amendment bill that proposed extradition to China.

Despite the peaceful rally, the police deployed #TearGas grenades and shot #RubberBullets at unarmed civilians, causing countless injuries in the crowd.

Whereas the police was condemned on an international level for their abuse of power and use of violence, the authorities in Hong Kong insisted in categorizing the pro-democracy rally in the Admiralty area as a "riot".

The government's reaction infuriated many citizens, causing over 2 million people to take part in Hong Kong's largest protest in history on June 16, 2019.

Source: Stand News #Jun12

#TodayinHistory #NeverForgive #HongKongProtests #PoliceViolence

#FirstHand #Jun12 #PressConference #Video
#StudentPoliticism Calls On Citizens to Stay True to the Original Cause on Protest Anniversary

Video: https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/30063

On June 11, 2021, the Hong Kong police arrested the convenor of the pro-democracy group #StudentPoliticism, #WongYatChin and the spokeperson #WongYuenLam. The police claimed that their plan to set up a street booth in Mongkok the next day was an "intent to incite or promote unauthorized assembly". The police also accused them of "inciting violence".

Read more:
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/30053

On June 12, 2021, the two pro-democracy youth were still detained by the police. Their fellow group members held a press meeting to reiterate their stance and express their determination.

The group clarified that in the past, when they mentioned the 2019 #AntiELAB movement, the use of force in protests was recounted as events but never promoted as a strategy. Their goal is to take part in civic education.

The group said the authorities has forced Hong Kong to enter an era of #WhiteTerror.

On June 12, the two year-mark of the first police-civilian clash in the 2019 pro-democracy movement, the group will not take any collective action, but every individual can speak up in defense of freedom and stay true to the original cause of the 2019 ptotests.

#HongKongProtests #Freedom

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Student Politicism Convenor Wong Yat-chin:
"No matter how many obstacles are there in front of us, we should continue to forge forward and stand by our beliefs"

https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/30066

#FirstHand #June12
Arrested Pro-democracy Youth:
"No matter how many obstacles are there in front of us, we should continue to forge forward and stand by our beliefs"

#Video in English:
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/30065

On June 12, 2021, the pro-democracy group #StudentActivism held a #PressConference in response to the police arrest of their convenor #WongYatChin and spokeperson #WongYuenLam the day before for a so-called "unauthorized assembly" that has not yet taken place.

Read more:
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/30053

Towards the end of the press conference, the group delivered a message from the convenor Wong Yat-chin who is currently in custody:

"While the regime can imprison us physically, they can never confine our wills and beliefs. No matter how many obstacles are there in front of us, we should continue to forge forward and stand by our beliefs. Wish everyone safe and sound."

The group called on pro-democracy and freedom-loving Honhkongers to never give up, despite the worsening situation:

"As long as there are lights, there will be people; and with people, there is always hope."

#AntiELAB #HongKongProtests #2Years

=====
Related News:

#StudentPoliticism Calls On Citizens to Stay True to the Original Cause on Protest Anniversary
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/30064

#Interview with Wong Yat-chin: “I was not born in Hong Kong, but I am willing to die for it”

https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/26874

#PoliceState #2Years
Hong Kong Police Intercept 70-year-old Elderly for Donning Black and Wearing Yellow Facemask on Protest Anniversary

On June 12, 2021, 70-year-old Mr. Au Yeung walking with a cane was intercepted by the Hong Kong police in the shopping district Causeway Bay.

Read More:
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/30068

Mr. Au Yeung said the police has been monitoring him and his two friends. The police accused them of violating the gathering ban in the peopled district.

Mr. Au Yeung donned a black shirt that read "No Fear, Fight On" and wore a yellow facemask that read #FDNOL.

The day June 12, 2021 marks two years since the first large-scale police-civilian clash in the 2019 #AntiELAB movement in Hong Kong. The police use of excessive force including #TearGas grenades and #RubberBullets at unarmed civilians on June 12, 2019 had sparked criticism worldwide and the local population's outcry.

Source: InMedia #Jun12
https://bit.ly/3pLsX4c

#Elderly #HongKongProtests #FightHongKong #NeverForget

#FirstHand #Jun12
HK Police Suppresses Street Booth Run by University Students on Protest Anniversary

On June 12, 2021, members of Hong Kong Federation of Students (#HKFS) and #ChanWingYan, vice-president of the #StudentsUnion of #LingnanUniversity, set up a street booth on a footbridge in Mongkok.

Numerous police officers arrived and intervened within 10 miniutes after the pro-democracy youth set up the booth.

The students called on Hongkongers not to forget the day two years ago on June 12, 2019.

June 12 marks the first large-scale police-civilian clash in the 2019 #AntiELAB movement.

#HongKongProtests #PoliceState #2Years #WeShallNeverSurrender

#GlobalSupport #Solidarity
Pro-Hong Kong Rallies Take Place Across the World on Protest Anniversary

On June 12, 2021, rallies in support of Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement took place in different cities across the world.

These included but were not limited to Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth in Australia; Auckland and Christchurch in New Zealand; Tokyo in Japan; Seoul in South Korea; London, Reeding and Liverpool in the United Kingdom.

In #London alone, there were three assemblies. At least one of them was attended by over 1,000 including exiled activist and former lawmaker #NathanLaw.

The rally in #Sydney was attended by hundreds including former lawmaker #TedHui. Hui called on overseas Hongkongers to speak up as much as they can and to support the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong.

In #Tokyo, over 250 Hongkongers and Japanese, dressed in black and holding umbrellas, marched from Shinjuku central park to different main streets downtown, attracting many onlookers.

The "Liberate Hong Kong, Revolution of Our Times" flags flew under the sky of all these different cities. The protest anthem "#GlorytoHongKong", which has been banned by Hong Kong authorities, was also heard in the air.

Source: Stand News #Jun12

#FightForFreedom #HongKongProtests #NeverGiveUp

#PoliticalProsecution #PoliticalPrisoner
#Letter from Jailed Activist #FigoChan: "As long as we keep our faith, we can advance through adversity together"

Figo Chan, League of Social Democrats committee member and vice-convener of Civil Human Rights Front, was handed a heavy sentence of 18 months for organising a march on Oct 1 2019, which the police deemed an unlawful assembly.

Before his sentence was announced, Chan wrote an open letter to Hong Kongers to thank them for giving their all to fight for democracy, freedom, human rights and justice.

He also said that, although Hong Kongers have a tough road ahead, “don’t forget, the seeds we've sown will certainly lead to a harvest in the future."

In the letter he wrote on May 22, 2021, Chan thanked Hong Kongers for their effort that raised worldwide attention to the Anti-ELAB movement and forced the government to withdraw the act. He felt “proud and touched”.

He also mentioned, although more and more activists are sentenced to prison for violating the National Anthem Ordinance and the National Security Law, Hong Kongers should persist in their belief.

“The road to democracy is very long. As long as we keep our faith, we can advance through adversity together. One day, we will meet again under the pot (Legislature Council Complex)."

Now that Civil Human Rights Front (#CHRF) is facing the risk of being banned by the government, Chan said that although he is being imprisoned, “I still insist that CHRF will not disband until the end. I also hope everyone will still keep fighting for Hong Kong, and speak up on June 4, July 1, etc on behalf of the arrested, exiled, in the name of freedom”.

In closing, he wrote: “There is hope as long as we are still here. Five demands, not one less! May glory be to Hong Kong.”

Source: Apple Daily #May28
https://bit.ly/2RQxGVP

#PoliceState #Court #NeverGiveUp #AntiELAB #HongKongProtests

#ProtestArt
#Hongkongers in #Switzerland Protest Outside #UnitedNations Headquarters

On June 12, 2021, Hongkongers in Switzerland rallied in front of the United Nations headquarters in #Geneva.

On the second anniversary of the #AntiELAB protests, they displayed multilingual signs, calling on the United Nations and the world to support Hongkongers' fight for freedom.

June 12 was the day when the first large-scale police-civillian took place. The police excessive use of force has been condemned by the local as well as international bodies.

Source: #FirstHand #Jun12

#GlobalSupport #OverseasHongkongers #HongKongProtests #FightForFreedom

===
Related Stories:

Two Years into Hongkongers' #FightForFreedom: "Keep the Faith, Until Darkness Gives Away to the Glorious Dawn and Freedom Returns to Our Land"

https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/30108

Hongkongers in #Nottingham, #UK Commemorate #AntiELAB Protest Anniversary

https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/30121

#PoliceState
#July1 protest organiser: As long as Hongkongers refuse to forget, echoes will reach us one day

For the first time in 18 years, the Civil Human Rights Front (#CHRF) will not submit an approval request to the Hong Kong police regarding the annual pro-democracy July 1 march.

According to the acting convenor Chung Chong-fai, the Civil Human Rights Front has stopped operating since its convenor Figo Chan has been jailed in May concerning a pro-democracy protest on October 1, 2019.

Chung said the Front will elect a new convenor in September 2021.

Chung added, many groups will organize street booths on July 1: "Even if the Front has finished its historical mission, it doesn't mean Hongkongers will stop speaking up."

"As long as Hongkongers refuse to forget, echoes will reach us one day," Chung reminded his fellow citizens.

Source: Stand New #Jun20
https://bit.ly/3qapvQZ

#HongKongProtests

#GreatFireWall #WhiteTerror
HK Security Secretary Connects Sympathy to Participation; LIHKG to be probed

In a meeting in Hong Kong's Legislative Council that is dominated by pro-Beijing lawmakers on July 6, 2021, Secretary for Security #ChrisTang referred the 2019 pro-democracy movement to "color revolution" that aimed at subverting the regime. The former police commissioner also urged citizens to condemn and report.

Tang said, "We will make not only the terrorists, but also the supporters and those who attempt to tone it down, live like rats."

On July 1, 2021, a 50-year-old Hong Kong man called #LeungKinFai died after knifing a police officer and stabbing himself reportedly on the chest. In following days, many Hongkongers mourned the man and brought flowers to the site.

The authorities claimed that mourning as well as posting comments about the man's death could breach the #NationalSecurityLaw.

Law professor #JohannesChan at the University of Hong Kong (#HKU) disagreed and pointed out that mourning the deceased out of sympathy is not a criminal act. Chan criticized that the "red line" drawn by the government is "way too unreasonable".

Secretary for Security Chris Tang, however, insisted that sympathy is a form of support and support is a form of participation.

Tang said, "depending on individual cases, we will see whether we have evidence to make arrests and take our prosecutions."

With reference to Prof Chan, Tang said, "I hope this legal scholar can sleep at night. because you might have painted Hong Kong in blood."

In addition, Tang said that the next target is the Internet Forum #LIHKG because it is "filled with illegal information". Tang claimed that authorities will make arrests and force the websites and the users to remove their messages.

Source: Stand News; RTHK #Jul6

https://thestandnews.page.link/WGcVhQPd8JEWUhrK6

#StateTerrorism #Article23 #Censorship #HongKongProtests #Mourning #Death #Martyr

Documentary About Hong Kong Pro-democracy Activists Wins Best Cinematography Award in #LibertyMovieFestival in #SouthKorea

#BlackBauhinia, a documentary featuring Hong Kong pro-democracy activists and social movements in Hong Kong since 2016, won the Best Cinematography Award at the Liberty Movie Festival in South Korea on November 24, 2021.

The film was directed by #MaltePhilippKaeding, a lecturer in international politics at the University of Surrey in the United Kingdom. Now-exiled Ray Toi-yeung Wong and now-jailed Edward Tin-kei Leung, who were representative localists and the founders of #HongKongIndigenous, were among those interviewed by the director.

The documentary also shows footages of the Prince Edward Station Attack by the Hong Kong Police on August 31, 2019, where the police assaulted train passengers indiscriminately.

In the trailer, pro-democracy activist Edward Leung talked about his utopia before going to jail -- a Hong Kong that is free and enjoys automnomy.

Watch the official trailer of Black Bauhinia:
https://youtu.be/HgNriD6U004

Source: Liberty Movie Festival #Nov24

#FilmFestival #Award #HongKongProtests #Documentary

#Court
21 Hong Kong Pro-Democracy Protesters Jailed for Up to 42 Months for Rioting

In the largest rioting case related to the 2019 Anti-ELAB protests, 21 citizens have been sentenced to jail terms between 30 months and 42 months for rioting. They were charged for taking part in the clashes that took place in Sheung Wan on July 28, 2019.

The defendants are aged between 19 and 40, seven of whom were students.

District Court judge Johnny Chan handed down the sentences on Jan 8, 2022 on the 21 defendants.

Chan said protesters’ gear and equipment demonstrated that they had come prepared, and so a riot was not unexpected.

[Editor's note: On July 28, 2019, crowds gathered in Sheung Wan to protest the police inaction during the previous week's 7.21 Yuen Long Attack, which was widely seen as tolerating and even condoning the mob violence against civilians. In contrast, police in Sheung Wan fired numerous tear gas canisters and rubber bullets in order to disperse the protesters. 44 people were arrested, including the 21 convicted for rioting.]

Source: Inmediahk.net; #Jan8
https://bit.ly/3f06EDx

See also: Kun Kit-Wang, a 26-year-old engineer who was charged in this case, defends himself in court

part 1:
Pro-democracy Engineer tells Hong Kong Court to "Return the Power to the Citizens"
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/31827

part 2:
Pro-democracy Engineer tells Hong Kong Court: We would not be in court if we have democracy
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/31833

#SheungWan #HongKongProtests #721YuenLong

Three Years Since First Police Suppression of Pro-Democracy #AntiELAB Protests in Hong Kong

On June 12, 2019, tens of thousands of pro-democracy Hongkongers gathered outside of the Legislative Council building and the Government Headquarters in Admiralty -- after over 1 million citizens took to the streets three days ago to protest the proposed bill that would allow extradition to China. Their message seemed all but ignored by the Hong Kong authorities.

The controversial Extradition Law Amendment Bill (ELAB) was slated to go through second and possibly third reading that day in the city's legislature, in which the pro-Beijing camp secured a firm majority by disqualifying a number of pro-democracy lawmakers. Without representation in the chamber, pro-democracy citizens occupied Tamar Park and spilled over to Harcourt Road and nearby areas, hoping a clear display of their disapproval would stop the passing of the extradition bill.

However, the peaceful protests were met with tear gas and violent police suppression. The authorities claimed that the unarmed citizens, expressing their pro-democracy demands, were rioting in the area.

In addition to arrests, the aggressive police response many civilians were injured and terrified. At one point, the police nearly caused a stampede as they teargassed both ends of the street outside Citic Tower, trapping a panicked crowd of hundreds as they sought refuge through the narrow doors of the commercial building.

The police aggression on that day had alarmed local and international observers, and drew widespread condemnation. On the other hand, the shared horrors that day united Hongkongers as they stood together against the CCP-backed regime, which finally showed its true, oppressive colors.

The day was only the beginning of the year-long #AntiELAB protests in Hong Kong.

Source:
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=8297021216990419&id=648757011816916

#Remembrance #3yearsago #NeverForget #HongkongProtests #Solidarity