I am beginning to think the #HK freedom struggle should take the 'opportunity' of the cancellation of Legco elections & the multi-front crackdown to develop our democratic capabilities. This can take many forms but I particularly have in mind the setting up of a shadow parliament The shadow parliament, unlike the #HK govt or Legco, would be fully democratically elected. Its basis could be the recent pro-democracy primary + perhaps District Councils. It would be elected by people in the HK freedom struggle & represent them.

Have just swiftly read the 'national security law' which came into effect at 11pm on June 30 at the moment it was published. As of yet, there's no English translation. My 1st observation is, no big surprises: most of the contents were previously divulged. gld.gov.hk/egazette/pdf/2… There's nothing in the law that provides for its retroactive application or for transport of suspects/defendants from #HK to China. Nor is there anything in it about the Chief Executive choosing judges for natsec trials or the setting up of separate natsec courts.

One year on from the death of Marco Leung Ling-kit at this exact spot, this is how #HK looks: nothing but a sea of green. #HKPoliceState In spite of the repression, still quite a few brave citizens are gathered at Pacific Place, Admiralty, to remember Marco Leung's fall on June 15 last year. It was for many a moment of reckoning, of realizing how serious the #HK freedom struggle had become & the sacrifice required

Lots of people gathering now around Sogo in Causeway Bay for #June12 anniversary. Poster of that day’s events are displayed. Lots of police too, both riot & undercover. Remember:all protests are still banned &police have announced thousands of cops are out tonight to prevent them 20.08 In Mong Kok, a large number of citizens have been indiscriminately kettled, presumably for stop&search. This is a frequently employed rights-abusing technique of the police. Very large police presence near Langham Place.

The media's been full of images of police brutality in the US- George Floyd's murder & the treatment meted out to protesters. Some observers have been struck by their similarity to images from #HK over the past year, but the similarity's superficial...
nytimes.com/2020/06/05/us/… Compare the responses of US & #HK authorities & businesses: In Minnesota, where George Floyd was murdered by the police, the officers have been arrested, the governor & Dept of Human Rights have undertaken a civil rights investigation of Minneapolis police going back 10yrs....

Atmosphere in Central & Admiralty very #PoliceState this morning. Riot cops patrolling every main road & pedestrian bridges in groups. Admiralty MTR exit to govt HQ blocked. While ‘national security’ laws would make #HK much worse, #HKPoliceState is already here. The scene along Harcourt Rd, in front of #HK govt HQ. & these are just the cops you can see. #HKPoliceState

A funny story from yesterday: A horde of police were trying to catch 2 youths they suspected of having thrown debris in the road. 1 cop dropped his baton. An old man picked it up, dropped it down a manhole cover, & sauntered away. When police came back for it, it was gone. All of #HK's resisting tyranny, each as they can. This is an occupied city. It's not a free, or 'semi-free' city, any more than France was semi-free under Nazi occupation. #HK is occupied. Unless you apply this lens to the situation, it's hard to understand what's happening here.

The queue’s 200 hundred meters long to get into the #LadyLiberty exhibit at openground in Sham Shui Po. Lady Liberty was destroyed by pro-CCPers on Lion Rock in Oct. A new Lady Liberty’s been made & the broken pieces of the old one, splattered in red paint, are also on display In fact, the new #LadyLiberty is too big to fit in the 1st-floor exhibition space. She’s here only from the waist up. The artists wanted to display her on ground floor but ‘suddenly’ govt officials showed up, w police across the street, & said it was against some obscure code.

In response to impending ‘national security’ legislation foisted upon #HK by #CCP, @chrf_hk says it can’t announce its plans for action yet (the circumstances are difficult with all protests banned) but calls on all HK people to stand up. m.facebook.com/CivilHumanRigh… Surely 1 reason for #CCP’s timing is to avail itself of #HK police ban on all protests on spurious public health grounds. Police have been perfecting their techniques of repression for months. CCP had to have full confidence in police to carry out its will before proceeding.

Part of the on-going campaign by #CCP, #HK govt & their allies to muzzle RTHK & to censor satire as a form of expression. All they will countenance is Carrie Lam’s Orwellian ‘Truth About Hong Kong’. Now more than ever we have to speak up for free speech & a free press.

https://twitter.com/timmysung/status/1262673279153606657

#HK govt has now followed up on Communications Authority censure of RTHK with a demand for a full review & apology. This is entirely out of order & full-on censorship. #SupportRTHK #FreePress news.rthk.hk/rthk/en/compon…

Today (May 18), 2:30pm, West Kowloon Magistrates’ Court
15 #HK pro-democracy leaders arrested April 18 have their 1st court hearing on charges of unlawful assembly & inciting unlawful assembly.
Gather beforehand outside the court to show our support! The 15 represent several generations of #HK pro-democracy leaders:
Old: Martin Lee
Middle-aged: Long Hair, Margaret Ng, Lee Cheuk-yan
Young: Raphael Wong, Figo Chan, Avery Ng, Au Nok-hin
Some have been tried before, others never.
The fight for democracy itself is on trial.

1st protester to be convicted of 'riot' has been sentenced to 4yrs in prison. Long sentence considering 1) he didn't injure anyone, 2) he threw stuff like an umbrella & a helmet & 3) he plead guilty. (Average #FishballUprising 'riot' sentence was abt 3yrs)
s.nextmedia.com/realtime/a.php… This is by far the longest sentence yet of all 15 #HK protesters sentenced to prison & shows how problematic the 'riot' offense under the Public Order Ordinance is: if the defendant is convicted of a discrete offense simply based on an act he committed, the sentence would be less

Tomorrow, May 14, West Kowloon Magistrates' Court: 95 on trial for 'riot' at #GlobalAntiTotalitarianism march on Sept 29. The trial's so big, it's in 2 batches: 9:30am & 2:30pm. This was the biggest trial in #HK history 'til superseded by 242 on trial for riot for Nov 18 protest. The 95 were brought straight from jail Sept 29 to court Oct 2 & charged w 'riot' tho prosecution'd gathered no evidence on individual defendants.Many were originally told they'd be charged w 'unlawful assembly' but then DeptOfJustice/police arbitrarily decided to declare a 'riot'

A Sing-With-You protest started about 20min ago at Cityplaza mall in Tai Koo. A large number of police just entered tha mall & appears intent on confronting the people singing. A mall protest took place in Central on Fri w/out police entering the mall. #HKPoliceState Hundreds gathered to sing in the mall. Perhaps the large number irritated police. Policing has been especially draconian & hostile to anything that looks like a protest for months. Freedom of assembly is unjustifiably circumscribed in #HK.

Full #HK & Macao Affairs Office statement. It just reiterates that #CCP can basically interfere in HK whenever it wants, but striking is that it singles out @joshuawongcf, Martin Lee & @cpdenniskwok as traitors, accusing them of an independence plot. hmo.gov.cn/xwzx/xwfb/xwfb… It ends, 郭荣铿等人该醒醒了。('Dennis Kwok & others should wake up.') Very intimidating language. Its tone almost sounds like a declaration of war on '#HK traitors' (ie, most of us, the majority). It must be rejected in the strongest possible terms.

Former #HK Legco pro-democracy member @loktinau has been arrested at home this morning, unknown on what charge, related to a protest in August. This is his 3rd arrest. He’s scheduled to be sentenced this coming Friday for assaulting police with a loudhailer at a July protest. This is the 41st arrest of 33 #HK pro-democracy leaders, including Legco members, District Councillors, party leaders & protest organizers, since protests started in June 2019. @loktinau is so far the only 1 to be convicted; 16 others on trial. Full list: medium.com/@KongTsungGan/…

A 4mo memorial for Chow Tsz-lok is scheduled in the Sheung Tak car park where he fell, but a half hour before it's to begin, there's a massive police presence both within & around the car park (which is privately owned). They're carrying out random stop&searches of citizens. While Tseung Kwan O is under police lockdown, another 4-month memorial for Chow Tsz-lok (& Chan Yin-lam, who died in September) is going on at Kwun Tong promenade.

500 march in Kwai Tsing against govt plan to designate local clinic for coronavirus treatment. Such protests have now occurred in about a dozen places in #HK. Residents protest lack of govt consultation w community & refusal to close border. inmediahk.net/node/1070824 Meanwhile, riot police continue to patrol various areas of #HK, conducting arbitrary stop&searches, almost always of young people. Here at 15.49 in Fo Tan which has seen protests in recent days. #HKPoliceState

Irresponsible @WHO led by a subservient @DrTedros has praised China's response to coronavirus but 'at critical turning points, Chinese authorities put secrecy & order ahead of openly confronting crisis & risking public alarm or political embarrassment'. nytimes.com/2020/02/01/wor… @WHO @DrTedros China’s 'initial handling of the epidemic allowed virus to gain tenacious hold.' It punished the doctors who 1st sounded alarm & played down the danger rather than warning Wuhan residents. When it closed the market that was the epicentre, it told people it was for 'renovations'.

Cheung Chun-kit, 40, owner of pro-democracy Lung Mun Cafe chain, sponsors vocational training for young protesters, as part of the “economic circle of conscience”. The #YellowEconomicCircle is growing, helping to foster a parallel society of resistance. scmp.com/news/hong-kong… A thread on the #YellowEconomicCircle in #HK, provoked by comments by out-to-lunch 'expert' economists.

YEC starts with two very basic questions:

‘Why should I give my money to businesses that side with my oppressor?’

and

‘Who should I then give my money to?’

Police are making deceptive statements about the incident that lead to them ordering the march terminated. They charged into a march of hundreds of thousands to catch 1 person & then acted aggressively & arrogantly as if intending to provoke the crowd.
news.rthk.hk/rthk/en/compon… Where police charged the march, rather than retreating immediately after detaining the suspect, they set up a cordon. This officer makes a mock lunge at me & then casually checks the press card of a journalist standing nearby. His behavior was typical.