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#CUHK #GoddessOfDemocracyStatue
On Christmas Eve, there was candlelight on the CUHK campus, sorrowing where the Goddess of Democracy is

The annual June 4th candlelight vigils in Victoria Park that had been banned for two consecutive years has "reappeared" in the Chinese University in Hong Kong (#CUHK) on Christmas Eve, following authorities deliberate removal of the statue of the Goddess of Democracy overnight.

The statue which had been placed on the university campus for 11 years, was suddenly removed without a word of warning on December 24, a day after the Pillar of Shame was dismantled in the University of Hong Kong (#HKU) on December 23.

Read more about the Dismentaling of Pillar of Shame in #HKU
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/31704

After lunch time, some students used dozens of pictures of the Goddess of Democracy statue to recreate the statue of Goddess of Democracy in CUHK.

Graduates and citizens even seen presenting flowers to the "new" statue in a bid to express their grief.

In the evening, they lit small candles that pieced together the appearance of “June 4th”, “democracy”, and “Goddess of Democracy”. It looked as if the long-lost candlelight vigils - held in remembrance of victims of June 4th massacre in Beijing - has actually "reappeared" on the campus of CUHK on Christmas Eve this year.

Brandon, a CUHK student, expressed that the statue of Goddess of Democracy symbolized not only the “June 4th incident”, it was also an indicator of freedom of speech and political climate in the university and the society at large.

He said the students knew that the school will remove the statue of Goddess of Democracy when HKU removed the Pillar of Shame. They believed it fell beyond the control of the university management.

“However we didn't expect that the statue literally disappeared overnight," added Brandon in distress.

Source : Stand News; #Dec24
https://thestandnews.page.link/2BeHeBaAcUuj6UzLA

#CUHK #June4 #GoddessOfDemocracyStatue #TiananmenMassacre #HKU #PillarOfShame #Candlelight

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RELATED ARTICLES
CUHK Removes Goddess of Democracy Statue Without Warning
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/31710?single
#WhiteTerror
Hong Kong Lingnan University removes Tiananmen Massacre relief citing legal and safety concerns

On December 24, 2021, Lingnan University (#LU) was the third University in Hong Kong to tear down monuments commemorating the victims of the 1989 June 4th Tiananmen Massacre from their campuses on two consecutive days before Christmas.

The removals came one day after the University of Hong Kong (#HKU) dismantled the Pillar of Shame during the night of December 23, 2021

The Chinese University of Hong Kong (#CUHK) removed the Goddess of Democracy statue from its campus in the early morning of December 24, whilst Lingnan University took off a Tiananmen Massacre relief citing safety and legal issues on the same day.

The student union expresses "deep regret for the university’s unilateral decision to remove the monument, with no communication with the students." They also "strongly condemn the move by the university to obliterate the historical symbol.”

The relief was created by Chinese-born New Zealand sculptor Chen Weiming in May 2009 – portrayed iconic scenes of the student-led democracy movement in Beijing which was forcefully clamped down by the People’s Liberation Army on June 4, 1989. Hundreds, perhaps thousands, died.

The art piece had shown the “Tank Man” image where an unnamed individual stood in front of a line of tanks, as well as impressions of citizens rushing injured protesters to the hospital on bicycles.

Some students said theu knew the removal of the relief by Lingnan University was coming; while some were surprised that it took place just a day after HKU removed another monument, the Pillar of Shame, overnight on Thursday.

#MemoryCrackdown #June4 #TiananmemMassacre #PoliticalOppression #CCP #PillarOfShame

Source: Whatsnewsmedia, HKFP; #Dec24
https://t.me/WhatsNewsHK/2695

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RELATED ARTICLES

Chinese Students Shocked Watching HKU's Removal of Pillar of Shame, Believes in Power of Witnesses

https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/31704

CUHK Removes Goddess of Democracy Statue Without Warning
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/31710
#Censorship #WhiteTerror
More attempts to crackdown memories of the June 4th Massacre in Hong Kong Universities

In Hong Kong, three universities have taken haste actions to remove historic monuments and statues - all related to the 1989 June 4th Tiananmen Massacre - before Christmas day.

It started with #HKU Dismentaling the #PillarofShame over midnight on December 23, 2021.

On December 24, 2021, the Chinese University of Hong Kong (#HKU) and the Lingnan University (#LU) removed the Goddess of Democracy statue and a Tiananmen Massacre relief on their campuses overnight.

In the City University of Hong Kong (#CityU), the acting president of the Students' Union, Mark Tse Man-Hei told local media that the Union has received a verbal warning from school authorities.

The warning letter asked for the Goddess of Democracy statue to be removed the soonest, saying that its display would be deemed a violation of “#NationalSecurityLaw”.

Source: Stand News; #Dec24
https://bit.ly/3pqfU9N

#FreedomOfSpeech

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RELATED NEWS
CUHK Removes Goddess of Democracy Statue Without Warning

https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/31710
#Resistance
Chinese Students Protest Against Removal of #TiananmenMassacre Monument at #HKU

On January 17, 2022 at the University of Hong Kong (HKU), students from China launched a flashmob protest against the university management's removal of the #PillarofShame, a monument commemorating the victims of the 1989 June 4th Tiananmen Massacre in Beijing.

The students laid flowers, handbills that read “Pillar Gone, Shame Still”, documents about the history of the pillar and red stain from dragon fruits at the original site.

Around ten security guards surrounded the area on high alert, checking journalists’ passes on the site. The guards removed the students‘ display within 2 to 3 minutes, calling the display as “pieces of trash”.

Source: InMediaHK #Jan17
https://bit.ly/3FHSRM

#NeverForget #Memory #Remembrance #University
New School for Democracy Announces Rebuilding #PillarofShame in #Taiwan: "One Pillar Falls, Thousands More Will Be Raised"

Source: RFA; Citizen News #Dec25

Read more
⬇️⬇️
#June4th
New School for Democracy Announces Rebuilding #PillarofShame in #Taiwan: "One Pillar Falls, Thousands More Will Be Raised"

In December 2021, #TiananmenMassacre memorials in three universities across Hong Kong were taken down within 48 hours. They included the Pillar Of Shame in the University of Hong Kong (#HKU).

On December 24, 2021, Taiwan's New School for Democracy announced their plan to rebuild the pillar at the National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall. They will also invite the pillar's creator #JensGalschiøt to unveil it on the June 4 night vigil in 2022.

"HKU tore down one pillar, but thousands more are being raised across the world," said the School. A 3D scan of the original pillar at HKU has been made available online for download.

The New School for Democracy also held a press conference titled "Don't Trample Human Rights and Affections with 'National Security'", in which they voiced their solidarity with Chinese human rights activists Zhang Zhan, Guo Feixiong, and Tang Jitian. The group called on Beijing to release the the three detained activists and let them be reunited with their families.

President of the New School for Democracy Association Zeng Jianyuan decried HKU's actions as destroying the university's spirit of autonomy.

Destroying "the Pillar of Shame for June 4", as he called it, is equivalent to erecting an invisible pillar of shame for academic freedom. Zeng announced that the Pillar will be rebuilt in Taiwan, and it will carry the memories of the Tiananmen Massacre as well as Hong Kong's Anti-ELAB movement.

Source: RFA; Citizen News #Dec25
http://bit.ly/3ql3TSt

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Related News:
Activists Preserve HK's Tiananmen Memorial Pillar in Digital 3D Model: "They Can't Silence Us All" [Oct 30, 2021]
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/31330

The Pillar of Shame is being destroyed in these minutes : Jen Galschiot calls for public record on Twitter [Dec 22, 2021]
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/31702

#Monument #Memory
#Crackdown #Censorship
Slogan dedicated to victims of Tiananmen crackdown has been painted over and lined with a row of potted plants in a Hong Kong University

#CUHK #LingnanU #HKU #PillarOfShame #Education #FreedomOfSpeech

Source: Inmediahk; #Mar31
Photo credit: HKFP

Read more
⬇️⬇️⬇️
#Crackdown #Censorship
Slogan dedicated to victims of Tiananmen crackdown has been painted over and lined with a row of potted plants in a Hong Kong University

Residents at Swire Hall of the University of Hong Kong (#HKU) painted a slogan on the bridge after the Tiananmen crackdown in 1989.

Every year since then, HKU students have retouched the slogan, which read: “Souls of martyrs shall forever linger despite the brutal massacre; Spark of democracy shall forever glow for the demise of evils.”

33 years later, the university cordoned off the bridge claiming for “regular maintenance works”. Later on the slogan was found covered with cement and on top of it, a row of flower pots was added.

The removal of the slogan was part of a wider clampdown on commemorations of the Tiananmen crackdown at universities across Hong Kong.

In December, HKU dismantled the Pillar of Shame statue – an eight-metre sculpture that depicts bloodied bodies bundled together – in the middle of the night.

The next day, also in the early hours, a Goddess of Democracy statue and a relief sculpture were taken down at Chinese University (#CUHK) and Lingnan University (#LingnanU).

#CUHK #LingnanU #HKU #PillarOfShame #Education #FreedomOfSpeech

Source: Inmediahk; #Mar31
https://bit.ly/3J16po2

Photo credit: HKFP
#WhiteTerror #Oppression
Over a dozen companies refuse to transport #PillarofShame, citing concerns over Chinese government's reprisal

Source: Inmediahk; #Apr19

Read more
⬇️⬇️
#WhiteTerror #Oppression
Over a dozen companies refuse to transport #PillarofShame, citing concerns over Chinese government's reprisal

The Pillar of Shame - the Tiananmen memorial at the University of Hong Kong (#HKU) which stood for more than 20 years - has been dismantled and packed away in cargo containers by the University management in the middle of the night in December 2021.

Since then, the creator of the Pillar, Danish artist #JensGalschiøt, had been attempting to ship the Pillar back to Denmark.

In a statement, Galschiøt said that his team, including lawyers, 2 shipping companies, and even the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs were involved in the effort, but they had yet to find a company to move the cargo container from storage to the container wharf.

12 shipping companies turned them down, all citing concerns over the Chinese government taking vengeance on them.

Galschiøt reiterated that he is still hopeful for success, but it remains unclear as to when the Pillar can be shipped out of Hong Kong.

Source: Inmediahk; #Apr19
https://bit.ly/3918PH7

See also:
The Pillar of Shame is being destroyed in these minutes : Jen Galschiot calls for public record on Twitter (Dec 23, 2021)
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/31702

New School for Democracy Announces Rebuilding Pillar of Shame in Taiwan: "One Pillar Falls, Thousands More Will Be Raised" (Jan 27, 2022)
https://t.me/BeWaterHK/15

#June4 #TiananmenMassacre #Memorial
The 33rd June 4 Memorials in Taiwan: crowdfunding reaches $640,000 now, ahead of schedule, the Pillar of Shame will be remade and "reborn" in Taipei's June 4 Memorial

The New School for Democracy of Taiwan has reached its funding target ahead of schedule, which is a key progress for the reconstruction of Hong Kong's #PillarofShame in Taiwan.

The 3-meter height statue was taken down in Hong Kong last year and is now being remade. It will be unveiled in Taiwan on June 4 memorial day.

The organiser expects 500 people to attend the memorial and may have more Hong Kong people attend than Taiwanese.

Source: The chaser news #May18

#PillarOfShame #June4 #NewSchoolForDemocracy #Crowdfunding

https://t.me/the_chaser_news/713