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Ban on Hong Kong National Party over ‘armed revolution’ call met with both cheers and fear

The United States, Britain and European Union decry unprecedented decision to outlaw party, while Beijing and pro-establishment lawmakers in Hong Kong say move sends strong message not to test limits of the law

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Police recommended in July that the Hong Kong National Party be outlawed for posing an ‘imminent threat to national security’. Photo: EPA

A Hong Kong separatist party was officially banned by the government on Monday on national security grounds, with Secretary for Security John Lee Ka-chiu saying its willingness to use force meant its pro-independence calls could not be regarded as mere “political rhetoric”.

Instead, the Hong Kong National Party’s (HKNP) statements could potentially motivate followers to “cause violence and public disorder”, and this was a “compelling” reason to take preventive action against them, he said.

The ban, which took effect immediately when the government published a gazette notice on Monday morning, came 10 days after the party and its convenor, Andy Chan Ho-tin, submitted their case against being outlawed.

It won support from Beijing and pro-establishment lawmakers but Hong Kong’s pro-democracy bloc decried the move as an infringement of civil liberties and warned it spelled danger for other political groups and activists.

Under the ban, anyone who associates with the party by serving the group, participating in gatherings or providing financial assistance could be liable on conviction to a fine and jail sentence of two to three years.

It was not immediately clear if Hongkongers who expressed their views on the party on social media or journalists who interviewed party members and reported their remarks would be flouting the ban. Asked if it would delete the HKNP’s Facebook page, which has close to 30,000 followers, the social media giant declined to comment.

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