Hong Kong officials have removed an online memorial to Tiananmen Square victims sparking fears of increased censorship in the semi-autonomous region
The controversial memorial was set up on a new website which allows citizens to create pages to mourn loved ones and leave them virtual trinkets, but was hurriedly removed once spotted by officials.
The 1989 massacre by the Chinese army is a forbidden topic on the mainland, but Hong Kong has enjoyed greater liberty from the oppressive regime ever since it was returned to China in 1997.
However, Hong Kong’s Food and Environmental Hygiene Department, which launched the website last week, deleted the page saying it was “inappropriate”.
Democracy activist Richard Tsoi claimed it was a clear case of political censorship. “You have no reason to censor information on the Internet,” he said.
“If people aren’t using the website to mourn someone, then that’s a different story. But they are. How do you decide who you can mourn and who you can’t?”
Ming Pao Daily News published a picture of the page which showed victims being rushed to hospital and named the deceased as “all casualties of the June 4 incident”.
According to the paper, one visitor left a message on the page saying: “All the souls that were butchered by the Chinese Communist Party: I hope you will rest in peace … I hope your spirit lives on. Let’s build a democratic China.”
Censorship is an ongoing problem in China. Google has shut down its service on the mainland in a row about internet freedom.
Last year file sharing sites like Twitter and Flickr were blocked by officials in the run up to the 20th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre.
Democracy campaigners fear the Chinese regime is slowly taking hold in Hong Kong, especially after two statues dedicated to the Tiananmen victims were confiscated just before the 21st anniversary on June 4 this year.
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