Queen’s funeral: Hong Kong police arrest man playing harmonica on sedition charges – BBC News

Hong Kong police have confirmed the arrest of a man who mourned Queen Elizabeth II outside the British Consulate-General on charges of “acting with seditious intent”.

According to Hong Kong media reports, the 43-year-old Hong Kong local man played the British national anthem and “Glory to Hong Kong” on the harmonica outside the Consulate General on Monday (September 19) night – the 2019 Hong Kong “anti-extradition” demonstration music —Then was detained and taken away by the police.

It was the only arrest in multiple days of mourning. Since the Queen’s death, many Hong Kong citizens braved the scorching sun to wait in line outside the consulate general to sign the condolence book and lay flowers in greeting outside the consulate, drawing criticism from the pro-Beijing media. Brian Davidson, the British consul general in Hong Kong, said that over the course of a week, at least 12,000 people had signed the condolence book.

According to reports, Hong Kong police entered the consulate at one point on Monday night and were asked to leave by consulate staff. In response to the BBC’s query in Chinese, the Hong Kong police said they had “maintained communication” with consulate staff about the mourning activities; the British Foreign Office did not comment on the BBC’s query in Chinese.

The crime of “acting with seditious intent” is not a crime under the Hong Kong National Security Law, but comes from the Crimes Ordinance. If prosecuted and found guilty by a court, first-time offenders can be sentenced to up to two years in prison and a fine of HK$5,000 ($637; 4,468 yuan); repeat offenders could be sentenced to three years in prison.

The offence can be traced back to the Sedition Ordinance 1938 enacted in British Hong Kong. Legal scholars and international human rights groups have pointed out that the ordinance was never adopted after the 1967 leftist riot trial, but was re-cited after Beijing enacted the Hong Kong National Security Law in 2020 and the Hong Kong Police National Security Service was established.

On September 10, five former directors of the Hong Kong Speech Therapist Federation were incited by the District Court of Hong Kong SAR of China for “conspiracy to print, publish, distribute, display or reproduce” under the “Criminal Offences Ordinance” due to the “Yamun Picture Book Case”. The publications were each sentenced to one year and seven months in prison.

In April, a 68-year-old man played “Glory to Hong Kong” with erhu on the sidewalk of Tung Chung Bus Terminal in Lantau, New Territories. The West Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts will rule on October 3. If found guilty, the defendant will face a fine of HK$2,000 or three months in prison.

The British Consulate-General in Hong Kong closed at noon on Monday for signing the condolence book, and the official memorial service ended. By evening, dozens of people gathered outside the consulate general to watch the online live broadcast of the Queen’s state funeral. According to “Ming Pao” reports, in addition to local people, there were also foreigners at the scene.

At that time, someone was playing the harmonica. Citizens held up their cellphones and flashlights and sang “Glory to Hong Kong”, and chanted slogans such as “God Save the Queen” in English and “Hong Kong people,” in Cantonese. The candlelight on the sidewalk railing outside the consulate, and another police officer intercepted and checked the harmonica-playing man outside the consulate, and then brought him into a police car. During the period, some police officers stepped into the consulate and were stopped by the staff.

As can be seen from the reported photos, the area is the gate of the consulate parking lot, and there is no fence separating it from the public sidewalk, but the pavement materials and styles are obviously different.

The online media “Hong Kong 01” said that the man involved was suspected of playing the harmonica on the concrete divider in the middle of the road, causing crowds to cheer up. A consulate-general staff then asked the police about the situation and asked them to leave the consulate. The police officer returned to the sidewalk and told the consulate staff that the police officers were present to maintain order, and due to the prevention and control of the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19), it was necessary to ensure that the people present maintained appropriate social distance to avoid people violating the “restriction of gatherings” order. .

Anti-epidemic regulations still in place in Hong Kong include not allowing more than four people to gather in public places. Violators may be issued a fixed fine of HK$5,000 by law enforcement officers in accordance with the Epidemic Prevention Emergency Act “Prevention and Control of Disease (Prohibition of Gathering) Regulations”.

The BBC Chinese inquired about the incident with the British Foreign Office and the British Consulate-General in Hong Kong. The British Foreign Office declined to comment; the Public Relations Department of the Hong Kong Police Force responded to the BBC’s Chinese enquiry, saying: “To ensure public safety and public order, the police have paid tribute to the relevant issues. The event is in constant communication with the staff of the British Consulate-General in Hong Kong and will provide assistance as needed to ensure the smooth and safe conduct of public activities outside the consulate.”

The police response did not specify the circumstances under which the officers were suspected of entering the consulate.

As for the arrested man, the Hong Kong police said they arrested him at about 21:30 and were still detained for questioning on Tuesday (20th).

After the death of Queen Elizabeth II, Chinese President Xi Jinping sent a message of condolence to the new King Charles III of the United Kingdom, and Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan went to the British Embassy in China to offer condolences, and went to London as Xi Jinping’s special envoy to attend the state funeral ceremony. Hong Kong Chief Executive Li Jiachao issued a statement of condolences. After being questioned by the media, he announced that he had appointed the Chief Secretary for Administration, Chen Guoji, to sign the condolence book at the British Consulate General.

“We are deeply moved by the patient and orderly waiting and respectful greetings from all of you (Hong Kong citizens) over the past week,” David Davis, the British consul general in Hong Kong, said in a video on Monday.

“Thank you for waiting in the hours-long queue in the hot weather and leaving your personal eulogy to Her Majesty in the book of condolences.”

Dai Weichen finally said in Cantonese: “Thank you for your support and greetings to the Queen.”

But the week-long mourning was not without controversy: Cantonese opera star Luo Jiaying and well-known actor Carina Lau posted condolences on social media, including Weibo, and were attacked and abused by “patriotic” netizens.

Among them, the wife apologized to Luo Jiaying of Wang Mingquan, a former member of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference in Hong Kong, and said: “I really can’t do it by forgetting my ancestors… I am Chinese, and I will always love my motherland.”

Ta Kung Pao, a newspaper directly under China’s central government’s liaison office in Hong Kong, published an opinion piece last week accusing “anti-China media” of “alternative political propaganda” by using Hong Kong people’s mourning for the Queen. However, the article also said: “This phenomenon is still worthy of attention, because it shows that there are still some people in Hong Kong who have a deep-rooted ‘colonial mentality’, and there is still a lot of work to be done in the ‘decolonization’ of Hong Kong.”

“Ta Kung Pao” published another article on the eve of the Queen’s state funeral: “The mourning event in front of the British Consulate in Hong Kong was turned into a market-style ‘political show’ (political show) due to someone’s ‘excessive force’.”

The article said: “The world is blowing the ‘decolonization wind’, but some people in Hong Kong are doing the opposite. It is really strange.”