Hong Kong security chief tells booksellers to screen titles after arrests
Five people linked to two Hong Kong bookstores were arrested in the latest police action against independent booksellers, AP reported.
By James Whitfield · Staff Writer
3 min read
Hong Kong’s security chief warned booksellers Thursday that they must ensure the titles on their shelves do not threaten national security, the Associated Press reported. The remarks came one day after police arrested five people connected to two bookstores, extending a series of cases that critics say has tightened pressure on expression in the city.
Secretary for Security Chris Tang told reporters at the Legislative Council complex that booksellers carry responsibility for what they sell. According to AP, Tang said the legal standard is clear, rejecting criticism that store owners face an uncertain boundary over prohibited material.
Tang compared the duty of booksellers to the obligations of food vendors, saying sellers must make sure their products are not harmful or illegal. Asked whether the government would publish a list of banned books, he said such a list would undermine enforcement against titles that authorities believe are intended to damage the country, AP reported.
Police raided Have A Nice Stay, a shop founded by former journalists, and Greenfield Book Store on Wednesday, according to AP. Police said the five people arrested were suspected of displaying seditious materials and selling seditious publications.
In a statement cited by AP, police alleged that the materials promoted hatred toward Hong Kong’s government, courts and law enforcement agencies. The arrests marked the third round of police action involving independent bookstores in four months, according to AP.
Have A Nice Stay had previously said it planned to close on Aug. 30. In a social media post cited by AP, the store said financial strain and an unclear legal boundary were among the reasons for the decision. The shop also said it could not read every book it carried and did not have the ability to determine which titles might be considered “problematic.”
Hong Kong authorities have also acted against other booksellers this year, AP reported. In March, police arrested the owner and staff of the independent store Book Punch, reportedly over suspected sales of seditious publications. AP said those publications included a biography of Jimmy Lai, the former pro-democracy media tycoon who received a 20-year sentence in his national security case.
In June, Hong Kong police arrested two booksellers on suspicion of selling seditious publications and receiving money from foreign political organizations, according to AP.
The cases have drawn attention beyond Hong Kong. Taiwan President Lai Ching-te wrote on Facebook that Hong Kong’s freedoms of speech and publication are under pressure, AP reported. Lai said independent bookstores play an essential role in protecting free thought.
Liang Wen-chieh, deputy minister of Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council, told reporters that some Taiwanese publishers had censored their own book lists while taking part in a Hong Kong book fair, according to AP. Taiwan is a self-governing democracy that China claims as its territory.
This story draws on original reporting from NPR.