Hong Kong activities marking Tiananmen Square crackdown on June 4 will be subject to laws, including national security legislation: Carrie Lam
- Chief executive says responsibility lies on shoulders of venue owners
- Football pitches at Victoria Park fully booked on date, but authorities say only sports activities allowed
Hong Kong’s leader has warned that events in the city mourning those killed in the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown will be subject to laws, including the national security legislation.
Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor addressed concerns on the issue on Tuesday, four days ahead of the 33rd anniversary of the crackdown.
Asked if residents who gathered at Victoria Park or commemorated the crackdown by lighting candles at home on Saturday would face legal consequences, Lam said all public activities must fulfil legal requirements regardless of purpose.
“As far as any gathering is concerned, there are a lot of legal requirements,” she told reporters before the weekly meeting of her de facto cabinet on Tuesday. “There is a national security law, there is the social-distancing restrictions under Cap 599 [of the Prevention and Control of Disease Ordinance], and there is also a venue question.
“So whether a particular activity has received authorisation to take place in a particular venue has to be decided by the owner of the venue.”
Under current Covid-19 pandemic rules, the gathering limit in public places is capped at four.