For the first May Day after 10 months of the implementation of the National Security Law in Hong Kong, the police still rejects applications from pro-democracy groups and trade unions to organize a “May 1 march” for the second year in a row, citing the seriousness of the pneumonia epidemic in the Communist Party of China and the restriction on gathering for the prevention of epidemics as reasons. They appealed to the public to write to the pro-democracy activists in prison, hoping that Hong Kong people would not give up the struggle. In addition, some political parties marched to the government headquarters, asking the authorities to pay attention to the problems of record high unemployment rate and disparity between the rich and the poor under the epidemic.
The Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions (CTU) has been staging a “May 1 march” every year on Labor Day for the past 20 years to fight for labor rights. Last year, when pneumonia was rampant, the police refused to allow the CTU to apply for the May 1 march for the first time on the grounds of the seriousness of the epidemic and the restriction on gathering.
The CTU displayed photos of the Hong Kong protest at the May Day street fair. (Photo by Voice of America’s Tang Hui-wan)
This year is also the first May Day Labor Day in Hong Kong, 10 months after the implementation of the National Security Law. The CTU, together with several pro-democracy groups and district councilors, launched the “Labor Day without a march, with street stations all over Hong Kong” campaign, setting up more than 30 street stations in various districts of Hong Kong with the theme of “Struggling in a chaotic world, carrying the weight forward”. With the theme of “struggling in troubled times, carrying the weight forward”, the campaign called on the public to write letters to imprisoned protesters and pro-democracy activists, and distributed small transparent cards with the message “Stick to your purpose” to the public in the hope of rekindling the fire of Hong Kong people’s resistance.
The CTU’s Labor Day Street Station from Causeway
A number of CTU members set up a street station in Causeway Bay at 1:00 noon on Saturday (May 1) to start the Labor Day street action. The executive committee member of the CTU, Mr. Deng Jianhua, said that he chose Causeway Bay as the starting point of the street station because many legal marches could be held in Hong Kong in the past, including the May 1, June 4 and July 1 marches, and hundreds of thousands of marchers, even millions of marchers in the anti-Send-China movement in the previous year, all used Causeway Bay as the starting point of the march.
Mr. Wong Nai-yuen, the temporary chairman of the CTU, said that under the National Security Law, Hong Kong has become a city governed by fear, and all aspects of culture, life and education have been affected.
Founded in 1990, the CTU has 78 affiliates representing nearly 140,000 members and is one of the largest trade union organizations in Hong Kong. Former President Wu Min’er, one of the defendants in the 47-member case of the 35+ primary election of the democratic camp, was detained for more than two months, during which he announced his withdrawal from the CTU; the current Secretary General, Lee Cheuk-yan, was sentenced to 14 months in jail for the 8-18 and 8-31 cases of the anti-sending campaign, and is currently serving his prison sentence.
The CTU calls on Hong Kong people to overcome their fears and continue their struggle
Wong Nai-yuen called on Hong Kong people to overcome their fears, continue to fight for their lives, and hold on to the bottom line of Hong Kong people, as members chanted slogans.
The interim chairman of the CTU, Mr. Wong Nai-yuen, said that Hong Kong has become a city governed by fear under the National Security Law. (Photo by Voice of America’s Tang Hui Yun)
In an interview with the Voice of America, Wong Nai-yuen said that the concept of the small transparent cards distributed to the public at the CTU’s street stations came from Chinese dissident artist Ai Weiwei’s “Perspective Study” series, which was originally in the collection of the M+ Museum in Hong Kong’s West Kowloon Arts District, but was banned from being displayed at the opening because the establishment thought it was disrespectful to the regime. He finds it rather ironic that this work is actually an expression of power symbols. He said the small transparent card also echoes the concept of saving 12 Hong Kong people last year, hoping that Hong Kong people will maintain the heat of resistance.
Social Democratic Party and Labor Party march to promote concern about the epidemic under the unemployment record high
On the other hand, four members of two democratic parties, the League of Social Democrats and the Labour Party, marched to the government headquarters on Saturday morning under the restriction of gathering, demanding the authorities to pay attention to the record high unemployment rate under the epidemic and the disparity between the rich and the poor, etc. They chanted slogans along the way: dignity of labor cannot be deprived; unemployment and poverty are unjustifiable; unemployment relief is a matter of urgency.
Chairman of the League of Social Democrats Wong Ho Ming read out the “May Day Proclamation”, saying that the epidemic has been raging for more than a year, and the number of unemployed people in Hong Kong has reached 260,000 and the number of underemployed people is close to 150,000, but the government has rejected the proposal of different political parties to set up temporary unemployment assistance.
Huang Haoming said, more ironic is that the Citibank survey released in April, the number of millionaires in Hong Kong under the epidemic not fall but rise, a record high in the survey years, but in February this year the government announced a freeze on the minimum wage in the case of continued inflation, maintained at an hourly rate of 37.5 Hong Kong dollars (nearly 5 U.S. dollars), working for an hour is not enough to eat a meal in a teahouse, criticizing the Hong Kong government will be working people into the epidemic “second-class citizens”.
Wong Ho-ming also said that political rights and labor rights are never inseparable, political rights are not fully protected, workers will not be able to express their views and fight for due labor rights, he criticized the Beijing-led revision of Hong Kong’s Chief Executive and the Legislative Council election system, so that the rights and interests of Hong Kong’s working class more unprotected.
Wong Ho-ming said: In recent months, the regime has made drastic changes to the electoral system on the grounds of “perfecting” the electoral system, which has not only caused the proportion of directly elected seats in the Legislative Council to regress, but also significantly weakened the rights of citizens nominated by Hong Kong people in the past by adding nominations for the five new sectors. The rights and interests of workers can hardly be protected.
Labor Party says Hong Kong has become a white terror society under the National Security Law
The vice chairman of the Labor Party, Mr. Mak Tak-cheng, said in an interview with the Voice of America that this year is the first May Day under the National Security Law, the red line of the National Security Law is everywhere, the big search and arrest against the democrats, coupled with the epidemic under the restriction of gathering order, the closure of the district mandatory testing and other measures, Hong Kong has become a white terror society, many Hong Kong people are discouraged, immigrants left Hong Kong, but I believe there are still Hong Kong people will not give up the struggle.
Ms. Chen, a Hong Kong citizen who left a message in support of the imprisoned protesters and democrats at the League of Social Democrats Causeway Bay Street Station, was interviewed by the Voice of America and said that many former legislators of the democratic camp were charged and scabbarded under the National Security Law just for participating in the primary election and speaking out.
Ms. Chan, a Hong Kong citizen, left a message of support for the protesters and democrats in prison at the League of Social Democrats street station on May 1. (Photo by Voice of America’s Tang Wai-wan)
The Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions (CTU) calls on Hong Kong people to resist in their daily lives.
The CTU issued a May 1 manifesto, saying that the Chinese Communist Party has used the Hong Kong National Security Law to raise the banner of “patriots ruling Hong Kong” and further emasculate Hong Kong’s “semi-democratic” legislature, replacing it with a rubber-stamp legislature like the National People’s Congress. According to the manifesto, Beijing’s so-called “improved electoral system” is a lie of the regime. A “post-National Security Law” order is being established in Hong Kong, and the regime is trying to bring China’s totalitarian order to Hong Kong, erasing all space within the system to reflect the views of Hong Kong people.
The manifesto says that the system has collapsed and the democracy movement is at a low ebb, but the spirit of self-help of Hong Kong people has not diminished. Resisting in daily life is a proof that everyone’s heart is not dying in Hong Kong.
According to a number of Hong Kong media reports, the representatives of the CTU at around 6 p.m. on Saturday, in Kwai Chung Plaza to speak one after another out of the street station, more than 10 police officers suddenly alleged that the people present may violate the restriction of gathering, the possibility of being ticketed, requiring the gathering of onlookers to leave, while pulling up an orange blockade around the street station, seven police officers in the blockade surrounded four CTU personnel, and finally the police did not issue a citation.
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