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Hong Kong (AP) — The Democratization Promotion Group, which organized some of the biggest protests during the months of political turmoil in Hong Kong in 2019, has been dissolved, the group said on Sunday.
The Hong Kong Civil Human Rights Front, which consists of a large number of membership organizations, said it could no longer operate.Decisions are made as a group Faced with police investigation According to local media, there is a possibility of violating national security law.
The group, which also organized an annual protest march to commemorate the transfer of the semi-autonomous territory to China in 1997, is the largest group to dissolve in a thorough crackdown on objections in the city. Earlier this week, the city’s largest teachers union was disbanded in light of dramatic changes in the political environment.
The crackdown follows Beijing’s imposition of National Security Act on Hong Kong last year. The law prohibits withdrawal, destruction, terrorism, and foreign collusion, and has arrested more than 100 democratic supporters and closed the democratization newspaper Apple Daily since it was first enforced a year ago. I did.
The crackdown has effectively silenced opposition in the city and has elicited US sanctions against Hong Kong and Chinese government officials.
Former Civil Human Rights Front leaders Figo Chan and Jimmy Siam are currently imprisoned for charges related to their activities.
“Today there is no Civil Human Rights Front, but we believe that different groups will continue to stick to their ideals, remember their original intentions and continue to support civil society!” The group said in a statement. ..
Authorities said the law did not apply retroactively, but a recent interview with the Hong Kong Police Force Secretary suggested that the group had been investigated to hold a rally in the past year.
Since the enactment of the National Security Act, many unions, associations and political organizations have disbanded in fear that the law could be used to target them.
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The Associated Press video journalist Katie Tam contributed to this report.
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