Hong Kong not dead yet, says Tiananmen veteran taking lone stand in park
for June 4 vigil
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[June 04, 2021]
By James Pomfret and Jessie Pang
HONG KONG (Reuters) - Han Dongfang, a
veteran Tiananmen Square activist, says Hong Kong should not lose heart
despite a heavy China-led crackdown on its freedoms, as he defied police
warnings and sat quietly on a park bench to commemorate the victims of
June 4.
Han, who was almost killed when People's Liberation Army soldiers opened
fire on pro-democracy protesters in Beijing in 1989, and was then jailed
and forced into exile, was one of the few people in Hong Kong's Victoria
Park on Friday afternoon, ignoring a police ban on an annual candlelight
vigil, ostensibly imposed as part of coronavirus restrictions.
Clad in a black T-shirt and yellow mask to ward off the virus, and
seated next to an old banyan tree, Han spoke of the importance of
keeping truths alive, and of not succumbing to fear - in a city where
individual rights are still guaranteed under a new national security
law.
"Today, I just feel like being here," the 58-year-old, with a long salt
and pepper beard, and bushy moustache, told Reuters.
Surrounded by dozens of police who were conducting body searches and
identity checks on some passersby, Han remained resolute on the tragedy
that has consumed much of his life.
Despite Hong Kong's crackdown under the national security law, imposed
last June, Han was upbeat on his adopted home city of 28 years where he
runs a labour non-governmental group.
"I was there in 1989 on June 4 in Tiananmen Square. I saw fire, I saw
the bullets, I saw blood ... But throughout these things, Hong Kong is
still Hong Kong. We are still privileged. It's a place that still has
quite a big space, and don't tell yourself there's no more space," he
said.
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Labour rights activist and Tiananmen protester Han Dongfang, poses
for a picture outside Victoria Park on the 32nd anniversary of the
crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators at Beijing's Tiananmen
Square in 1989, in Hong Kong, China June 4, 2021. REUTERS/Lam Yik
"Before your last breath, don't tell yourself you are
dead."
Chow Hang Tung, one of the organisers of the Hong Kong vigil was
arrested early on Friday and police warned of further detentions if
people violated the ban on illegal assemblies.
Han acknowledged the dangers but said people were not looking to
cross China's national security red lines, but to do something
dignified and meaningful.
And while the park might not be filled with tens of thousands of
people for the first time in 32 years after police cordoned off the
football pitches where most people gather, Han remained confident
the historical record would be preserved.
"One important thing is, whatever happens don't scare yourself," he
said.
"Don't tell yourself there's no light, particularly if you are in a
dark tunnel. That doesn't help. There must be light at the end of
the tunnel."
(Reporting by James Pomfret and Jessie Pang; Editing by Robert
Birsel)
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