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| See also: | Other events of 2019 History of Hong Kong • Timeline • Years | ||||
Events in the year 2019 in Hong Kong.
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| See also: | Other events of 2019 History of Hong Kong • Timeline • Years | ||||
Events in the year 2019 in Hong Kong.
Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor is a Hong Kong retired politician who served as the 4th Chief Executive of Hong Kong from 2017 to 2022, after serving as Chief Secretary for Administration for five years.
Alice Mak Mei-kuen is a Hong Kong politician, currently serving as Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs. She was formerly a member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong for the Election Committee, representing the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions. She graduated from Department of English of the Chinese University of Hong Kong. She has been a member of the Kwai Tsing District Council since 1993, and represented the Wai Ying constituency until 2019.
The administration of Carrie Lam as Chief Executive of Hong Kong, or Lam administration, officially referred to as "The 5th term Chief Executive of Hong Kong" relates to the period of governance of Hong Kong headed by Chief Executive Carrie Lam, between 1 July 2017 and 30 June 2022.
The 2019 Hong Kong District Council elections were held on 24 November 2019 for all 18 District Councils of Hong Kong. 452 seats from all directly elected constituencies, out of the 479 seats in total, were contested. Nearly three million people voted, equivalent to 71 per cent of registered voters, an unprecedented turnout in the electoral history of Hong Kong. The election was widely viewed as a de facto referendum on the concurrent anti-extradition protests.
The Fugitive Offenders and Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Legislation (Amendment) Bill 2019 was a proposed bill regarding extradition to amend the Fugitive Offenders Ordinance in relation to special surrender arrangements and the Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Ordinance so that arrangements for mutual legal assistance can be made between Hong Kong and any place outside Hong Kong. The bill was proposed by the Hong Kong government in February 2019 to establish a mechanism for transfers of fugitives not only for Taiwan, but also for Mainland China and Macau, which are currently excluded in the existing laws.
The 2019–2020 Hong Kong protests were a series of demonstrations against the Hong Kong government's introduction of a bill to amend the Fugitive Offenders Ordinance in regard to extradition. It was the largest series of demonstrations in the history of Hong Kong.
The 2019 Yuen Long attack, also known as the 721 incident, refers to a mob attack that occurred in Yuen Long, a town in the New Territories of Hong Kong, on the evening of 21 July 2019. It took place in the context of the 2019–2020 Hong Kong protests. An armed mob of suspected triad members dressed in white indiscriminately attacked civilians on streets with steel rods and rattan canes, before attacking members of the public in nearby Yuen Long station including the elderly, children, protesters returning from a demonstration in Sheung Wan on Hong Kong Island, journalists and lawmakers.
The period from March to June 2019 in the 2019–2020 Hong Kong protests is considered the early stage of the movement. Until the first mass demonstrations in June, protests were focused on the withdrawal of the extradition bill. In June, protesters started to lay out five demands. The additional four demands concerned the reactions of the Hong Kong government and especially, the police to the protests, and called more broadly for full democracy in the city.
The founding cause of the 2019–2020 Hong Kong protests was the proposed legislation of the 2019 Hong Kong extradition bill. However, other causes have been pointed out, such as demands for democratic reform, the Causeway Bay Books disappearances, or the fear of losing a "high degree of autonomy" in general. The Hong Kong protests are unique in this respect from democracy protests in general, which are often provoked by economic grievances. Subsequent actions by the police, such as mass arrests and police violence, as well as what was perceived to be an illegitimate legislative process of the bill, sparked additional protests throughout the city.
This segment of the timeline of the 2019–2020 Hong Kong protests covers the month of July 2019. The anniversary of the 1997 handover of Hong Kong to China on 1 July saw large daytime protests. In the evening of that day, protesters stormed the Legislative Council Building and defaced symbols, with police only moving in after midnight. This incident, which was sharply condemned by the government of Carrie Lam, did however not lead to a split between peaceful and violent protesters. Observers linked the understanding of the non-violent protesters for the violent wing to the lack of willingness of the Lam government to engage in dialogue about the protesters' five demands. Apart from major protests on Sundays, there were also mostly peaceful demonstrations during the week.
The month of August 2019 in the 2019–2020 Hong Kong protests saw a continuation of protests throughout the city. Several of the peaceful daytime protests were held by social groups such as families, the elderly, and various professions. In many instances, peaceful protests occurs during the day, turning increasingly violent at night. In North Point and Tsuen Wan, white- or blue-shirted armed groups were attacking protesters, but unlike in the Yuen Long violence of 21 July they were beaten back in North Point. Protesters aimed at drawing international attention through methods such as extended sit-ins at the airport. In many occasions, an eye injury of a female protester who had served as frontline medical staff became a symbol of the protests. At the airport protests, a mainland journalist was violently tackled by protesters who did not reveal his identity to the protesters. Protesters later apologised for this incident, reducing tensions and satisfying some pro-establishment lawmakers. The Prince Edward station attack on 31 August proved to be a further landmark event in the protests.
The sophistication, novelty and diversity of tactics and methods used by protests in the 2019–2020 Hong Kong protests have been noted by many scholars and news outlets around the world. They range from new principles of autonomy and decentralisation, incorporating different methods of demonstration, economic and social protest, and most notably new technological methods for organising and ensuring the security of protesters. Many of these tactics have been used or were inspired by previous protests. The sheer scale, complexity, and variety of tactics used have become a case study for mass protests around the world. This article aims to present the most relevant tactics and methods used during the Hong Kong protests.
The conduct of the Hong Kong Police Force is a subject of controversy during the 2019–2020 Hong Kong protests. Tactics employed by the force have led to misconduct allegations and protesters have accused the Hong Kong government of using the police as a method to resolve a "lingering political crisis." Actions taken by the police force and the Hong Kong government have caused mixed reactions inside Hong Kong and in the general international community. Allegations against the police include excessive use of force, force against unspecific targets, and arrest without warrant. These allegations have been presented in various media both supporting and detracting from the complaints, such as through amateur video. In general, the spirit, rumors, videos, and other media shared by the public have caused a drop in support for the police force, and an Amnesty International report accused the police of using excessive force against civilians. One of the objectives of the 2019–2020 protests is establishment of an independent inquiry system into said allegations.
This is a list of domestic and international reactions to the 2019–2020 Hong Kong protests.
Activists and artists taking part in the 2019–2020 Hong Kong protests use artwork, painting, music, and other forms of artistic expression as a tactic to help spread awareness about the events that have happened in the city. Individuals who create protest art are commonly referred to as the "publicity group" (文宣組). Creating protest art is seen as a peaceful, alternative way for citizens to express their views without participating in protests. Most members work under pseudonyms to protect their identity and stay in line with the movement's leaderless nature.
Jimmy Sham Tsz-kit is a Hong Kong pro-democracy and LGBT rights activist. He served as a convener for the pro-democracy organisation Civil Human Rights Front (CHRF) until October 2020 and serves as a secretary for the LGBT rights organisation Rainbow of Hong Kong. He is a longtime member of the League of Social Democrats. In 2019 he was elected to the Sha Tin District Council by residents of Lek Yuen constituency, but he resigned from this position in July 2021 amidst a government crackdown on pro-democracy councillors.
The 12 June 2019 Hong Kong protest, also known as "612 incident". refers to an incident of intense confrontation between anti-extradition bill protesters and the Hong Kong Police Force, occurring on 12 June 2019 outside the Government Headquarters in Admiralty, Hong Kong Island. The protest was sparked by the government's introduction of the controversial Fugitive Offenders amendment bill, which was set to go through second reading on 12 June despite mass opposition.
Amber Poon Hiu-wing, a 20-year-old pregnant woman from Hong Kong, was murdered in Taipei on 17 February 2018 whilst on vacation with her boyfriend Chan Tong-kai, aged 19 at the time and from Shenzhen. Chan admitted to Hong Kong authorities that he killed his girlfriend in a hotel room in Taipei, stole her belongings, left her body in the bushes, and flew back to Hong Kong. As the murder happened in Taiwan where they had no jurisdiction, the authorities in Hong Kong could not charge Chan with murder, and could only sentence him on money laundering charges resulting from the killing. Chan could not be extradited to Taiwan either since there is no extradition treaty between Hong Kong and Taiwan.
The 2020 Hong Kong Legislative Council election was originally scheduled on 6 September 2020 until it was postponed by the government. On 31 July 2020, Chief Executive Carrie Lam announced that she was invoking the Emergency Regulations Ordinance to postpone the election under the emergency powers granted to her by it, citing the recent resurgence of the COVID-19 cases, adding that the move was supported by Beijing.
On 6 September, the biggest protests in the course of the 2019-20 Hong Kong protests since 1 July occurred in the city. The fresh protests were in a large part due to the day having been the scheduled election day for the Legislative Council; on 31 July, the Hong Kong government had the elections postponed by a year, citing the COVID-19 pandemic, a justification that was widely doubted. The unauthorized protests resulted in nearly 300 arrests, one of them on suspected violation of the national security law, and brought the total number of arrests during the entire protests since June 2019 to above 10,000.
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