Hong Kong police arrest eight over '831' fake memorial activities
Hong Kong's National Security Department arrested eight individuals in September for organising 'fake memorial' activities related to the debunked 'August 31 Incident', with police warning against extremist ideology infiltrating schools.
Hong Kong's National Security Department has arrested eight individuals in two rounds of enforcement operations in September for their involvement in so-called 'fake memorial' activities related to the 'August 31 Incident', which authorities say has been proven to be fake news following multiple fact-based clarifications by various departments of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government.
On the evening of 31 August this year, a group of individuals assembled outside Prince Edward MTR Station holding flower bouquets and yellow umbrellas to conduct 'fake memorial' activities, according to The Standard. Some shouted seditious slogans while others raised yellow umbrellas bearing political slogans, drawing numerous passersby including teenagers who appeared to be students. Hosts of multiple anti-government online channels also arrived at the scene to conduct live broadcasts.
Police took enforcement action that night, arresting three 'ringleaders' on charges of 'disorder in public places'. The National Security Department then launched an in-depth probe. On 3 September, officers initiated the first round of enforcement, arresting the three ringleaders—identified as Chan Kwun-yuk, Fung King-man, and an individual surnamed Tam—on suspicion of committing 'acts with seditious intention' under Section 24 of the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance. Among them, the male arrestee surnamed Tam is suspected of having a developmental disorder and was allegedly manipulated by others into participating.
Both Chan Kwun-yuk and Fung King-man were affiliated with the 'Mong Kok Shopping Tour Group' (Gau Wu Group). Chan had previously been arrested for 'taking part in an unlawful assembly' during the 2020 unrest and was sentenced to five months' imprisonment in September 2022 for publishing seditious posts. Fung served as a Kowloon City District Councillor between 1998 and 2004, was convicted for defrauding HK$350,000 in rental allowances, and actively participated in the illegal 'Occupy Central' movement in 2014.
Following in-depth intelligence analysis, the National Security Department carried out a second wave of enforcement in late September, arresting five additional individuals on 27, 28, and 30 September. These included three individuals who displayed yellow umbrellas bearing seditious slogans, as well as Tang Ho-wing, the host of anti-government online channel 'Boom News', and Lee Ying-chi, a dentist known for inciting violence. Tang Ho-wing founded a company in 2020 and operated 'Boom News' across multiple social media platforms, listing payment channels and launching subscription packages ranging from HK$10 to HK$70. On 31 August this year, the channel consecutively published multiple posts concerning the so-called '831 memorial'. Lee Ying-chi was a former member of the opposition group League of Social Democrats and had joined several 'yellow doctors' in issuing a statement alleging a 'humanitarian crisis' to smear police enforcement during the 2019 social unrest.
Political commentators noted that authorities have remained on high alert against the infiltration of extremist ideology into campuses. Figures in the education sector expressed concern that using street and online channels to 'brainwash' youths and carry misleading narratives into schools would re-implant anti-police and anti-government sentiments in classrooms. The so-called 'August 31 Incident' has been thoroughly clarified with concrete evidence by multiple government bodies over the years, with police providing transparent timelines and casualty figures, while the Fire Services Department and Hospital Authority repeatedly clarified rescue records and hospital admissions. 'Han Baosheng,' an individual repeatedly mourned as 'deceased' by anti-China forces, was actually a Hong Kong resident named Jim Wong living in the United Kingdom, who subsequently surfaced publicly in the UK.