Using a national-security law to lock people up over a song is further proof of the government’s thin-skinned insecurity. Authorities show no sign of loosening their grip
Cheng Wing-chun, a 27-year-old Hong Konger, became the first person in the territory to be convicted of insulting China’s national anthem. Mr Cheng posted a 94-second video to YouTube of a local athlete receiving a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, in which he substituted “March of the Volunteers”, China’s national anthem, for “Glory to Hong Kong”, a popular pro-democracy anthem. His conviction is a sign of things to come: Hong Kong’s government wants to silence the song for good.
The catalyst was a series of gaffes. In March officials at the Ice Hockey World Championship in Bosnia and Herzegovina—who had searched for “Hong Kong national anthem” online—mistakenly played the catchy Cantonese tune instead of China’s anthem. It was the fifth such blunder at an international event in the past year. Hong Kong’s government demanded that Google demote “Glory” in its search results. But the tech giant refused, saying that there was no evidence that the song was illegal.
The ban would be the latest blow to freedom in Hong Kong. Since the national-security law was passed in June 2020, protest, free speech and local independent media have been smothered. Authorities show no sign of loosening their grip. On June 4th, more than 20 people
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