05/04/2020 Washington D.C. (International Christian Concern) – The chaos in Hong Kong that dominated the headlines in 2019 has become overshadowed by the coronavirus in 2020, but the fight for freedom in Hong Kong continues.

Ongoing protests, continuous arrests, and mysterious deaths in Hong Kong have not ended since the inception of the anti-extra­dition law last June. In fact, the onset of the coronavirus, which has shuttered businesses and countries alike, has only escalated ten­sions in Hong Kong.

“There has been lots of frustration towards the Hong Kong government’s handling [of the coronavirus] especially during [the] early phase. The fact that there were strikes by med­ical professionals [to protest the government’s inaction on closing the border to China] is worrying and shows a serious sign of politi­cal turmoil,” Benedict Rogers, the founder of Hong Kong Watch, told ICC.

Christians in Hong Kong stood by thou­sands of medical professionals on February 3, when they went on strike for a “complete clo­sure” of all control points from China in a bid to save Hong Kong from COVID-19. They even issued a statement to stand in solidarity with these doctors and nurses.

Oppression

In the midst of fighting the pandemic, China announced in February that it would put Xia Baolong, previously known for remov­ing thousands of crosses from churches in Zhejiang province, in charge of Hong Kong and Macau affairs.

A pastor in Zhejiang told ICC, “This shift [from Zhang to Xia] is not a good situation.”

He added, “It is possible that Xia will oppress the churches in Hong Kong.”

Rogers is very concerned about China’s appointment of Xia Baolong. Baolong is a hardliner, trusted by Xi Jinping, who was the senior official in China’s Zhejiang province. According to Rogers, “He has a record of oppression, which doesn’t give one hope of what is to come.”

It Lives On

Even though the Special Administrative Region (SAR) government in Hong Kong has retracted the controversial bill that started this chaos, the movement lives on. The other four demands, including retraction of the characterization of the protests as “riots,” release and exoneration of arrested protesters, establishment of an independent commission of inquiry into police behavior, and universal suffrage for Legislative Council and Chief Executive elections, have not been met.

Instead, arbitrary arrests and mysterious deaths of protesters continue to characterize the streets of Hong Kong.

Ongoing police brutality is still a major issue in Hong Kong. Amid the coronavi­ rus outbreak, authorities made a shocking chain of arrests after a series of commemorative events this spring. Significantly, those arrested in February were not young protestors; one of the arrested, Jimmy Lai, is a pro-democracy Hong Kong media tycoon. The two others are former activists, no longer focal to the movement.

The unusual arrest of such high-profile individuals highlights the extent to which freedoms in Hong Kong are deteriorating. Despite the silence of the govern­ment after arresting over 7,000 people, Rogers believes that the movement will continue. “People have shown determination, even as more and more people [are] arrested and beaten, the fear of violence, arrest, and the corona­virus have reduced the number of protesters. Certainly the activi­ties and forms of protests would be altered as a result, […] but the movements won’t stop,” he shared.

An Ocean Away

Rogers believes that interna­tional pressure is essential to the success of the movement in Hong Kong. The US has taken a strong stance, and he urges the UK gov­ernment and others to do more to speak out.

A group of Hong Kongers in the US has been instrumental in pushing Washington DC to do more. A Hong Konger-American Christian, Daniel Mok, who has been involved in DC4HK, a local action group, shared with ICC their movement stateside and what they aim to achieve:

“Hong Kongers in the US are trying to achieve the same thing as Hong Kongers in Hong Kong. We want to preserve Hong Kong’s basic freedoms and auton­omy. Although an ocean away, we have used our circumstances as an opportunity to make real impact, and the passage of The Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act is the most vis­ible result.”

Hong Kongers in America are doing everything they can to help their brothers and sisters across the ocean. They’ve increased their civic engagement through local public rallies, letters to congres­sional representatives, and the creation of the politically-focused NGO Hong Kong Democracy Council last year.

As a Christian, Mok’s faith has helped him in dealing with what has been going on in Hong Kong. He shared, “My faith in God’s sovereignty gives me assurance while living in uncertainty, and helps me maintain peace to stay optimistic while there is a lot of stress and negativity that have built up over weeks and months of fighting against Goliath. My faith has given me purpose and conviction to continue to fight for Hong Kong.”

While there is no end in sight, the Lord will surely make a way for Hong Kong. We just need to wait for His time.

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