Chinese official: It’s only a matter of time before the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China is disbanded or banned

A senior official of an official Chinese agency says the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China (HKASPDMC) must be disbanded or banned, and threatens its personnel with possible criminal prosecution for violating state security laws.

In a newspaper article published Monday (June 7, 2021), Lu Wenrui, vice chairman of the All-China Federation of Returned Overseas Chinese (ACRC), which is part of the Communist Party’s Central Committee Secretariat, said that the Alliance is essentially subverting the basic system of the Communist Party-led state in China under the Constitution in the name of democracy, and that even if the slogan “ending one-party dictatorship” is abolished, it will not change its subversive nature. Even if the slogan of “ending one-party dictatorship” is abolished, it will not change its nature of subverting the regime. He said that according to the National Security Law, there is no room for the Alliance to exist, and it is only a matter of time before it is disbanded or banned.

Lu also said that if the UFC disbanded on its own, law enforcement agencies might let the members of the group off the hook, but if they waited for the authorities to ban them, they could be held criminally responsible under the National Security Law.

On the eve of the bloody crackdown on students and citizens at Tiananmen Square in Beijing on June 4, 1989, the Hong Kong public formed the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China to express support for the peaceful petitions of students and citizens in mainland China.

Since then, Hong Kong has been the only place in China for 30 years to hold public rallies to commemorate the June 4 Incident, the largest of which is the annual candlelight memorial service held by the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China in Victoria Park on the evening of June 4. But Hong Kong authorities, controlled by Beijing, last week banned the organization from hosting the memorial service for the second year in a row, citing the new epidemic. A number of pro-democracy activists who participated in the memorial service last year without permission were jailed by the authorities.

In addition, Hong Kong authorities forced the Alliance to close the June 4 memorial on the grounds that it was operating without a license.

The Hong Kong government has not yet directly prevented the Alliance from hosting events on the grounds of national security laws, but authorities are under pressure from Beijing to ban it directly under national security laws.

Speaking on a Radio Television Hong Kong program on Monday, Alliance Secretary Tsoi Yiu-cheong said the organization will continue to mourn the victims of June 4 and pursue truth and justice.

Last week, Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam was asked if people could mourn June 4 on their own initiative, saying that the national security law enacted on June 30 last year has had a major impact on Hong Kong and that the environment has changed, with the law requiring all SAR agencies, groups, media and schools to fulfill the national security law. She said that close to this date (June 4), she wanted to clearly tell everyone to respect the Constitution and safeguard national security.

According to an opinion survey on the anniversary of the June Fourth Incident released by the Hong Kong Institute of Public Opinion last Tuesday, 47% of the respondents supported the vindication of June Fourth, a big drop of 13 percentage points from last year. Observers believe this is related to the atmosphere of political terror created by Beijing’s imposition of national security laws in Hong Kong on June 30 last year.