- Audit officials point out the Leisure and Cultural Services Department started preliminary review of materials in 2021 with some still in progress in February this year
- Department explains that number of books they need to review increases continuously as they receive complaints from the public
Since Hong Kong’s public libraries have more than 2 million titles, the department says it has to prioritise which ones to review first. Photo: Winson WongThe operator of Hong Kong’s public libraries said it has reviewed books “manifestly contrary” to the interests of national security and removed them from its collection, as the city’s auditor watchdog demanded on Wednesday that it step up its efforts.
The Leisure and Cultural Services Department operates 70 static libraries and 12 mobile ones as of 2022. An Audit Commission report called on the department to step up its efforts to look for materials that might endanger national security and take follow-up action.
In response, the department said it has already completed the review of library books deemed “manifestly contrary” to the interests of national security and removed them from its shelves.
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In the report, audit officials pointed to a preliminary review of library materials the department started in 2021. Examinations of some items for follow-up action were still in progress in February this year.
The department explained that examining library books for national security risks was an “ongoing” process. The number of books they need to review increases continuously as they receive complaints from the public.
It also noted that books varied in the complexity of their content, which made it difficult to provide a standard indicator of how long it takes to finish reviewing a book. The size of the public library’s collection was also an issue. Since there are more than 2 million titles, the department had to prioritise which ones to review first.
The national security law was imposed by Beijing on the city in June 2020 following months of anti-government protests. The law criminalises acts of secession, subversion, terrorism and collusion with foreign forces, and it has a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
Responding to the recommendation raised by audit officials, the department said it agreed that actions to safeguard national security were of the utmost importance.
The department said if it received a complaint about a book suspected of violating national security law, it would suspend service and review its contents. If it was confirmed, the book would be removed from its collection.
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This is not the first time authorities have set their sights on libraries, with books written by several localist or pro-democracy politicians being taken off the shelf pending a review of whether they breached the national security law.
A controversy was sparked when books by jailed Apple Daily founder Jimmy Lai Chee-ying were displayed as “the librarian’s choice” at Shek Tong Tsui Public Library in Sai Wan in 2021. They were soon replaced by some about culture and traditions.
The Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau said in April that public libraries had received 1,120 complaints in the past three years that the contents of some books might have breached the national security law, adding most were repeated cases and had been filed by the same people.