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Just Saying | Help, anthem anarchists are killing soccer in Hong Kong!
Yonden Lhatoo is somewhat amused but more alarmed by the antics of rebellious crowds turning up at soccer stadiums to boo the national anthem rather than watch matches
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Hong Kong has a popular new pastime these days: going to soccer games to boo or support the national anthem – or watch others do it.
Kind of like the Rugby Sevens, where many spectators turn up for beer-fuelled buffoonery more than the actual game – only, in this case they’re playing with fire by testing the limits of tolerance from policymakers in Beijing who see such shenanigans as treason.
Clashes over national anthem law at Hong Kong graduation ceremony
It’s become a regular feature at international matches hosted by the city, now that Hong Kong is on the verge of adopting new legislation recently enacted on the mainland to make disrespect for March of the Volunteers a criminal offence punishable by up to three years in prison.
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It’s understandable that Hong Kong Football Association chief Mark Sutcliffe is rather miffed about the whole thing.
“Our beloved game is being hijacked (to the obvious delight of the media) as a political tool by both sides in a polarised, fractured society,” he wrote in his blog on Friday. “It’s very sad that the action on the pitch is now seen by many as secondary to what is happening off it.”
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