The continued attention on the Hong Kong Horace Garden fire, which resulted in the deaths of 159 people, has led to a significant development. On Saturday, December 6, the National Security Department of the Hong Kong Police Force arrested a 71-year-old man. This arrest marks the first publicly acknowledged action by the authorities related to criticism of the handling of the fire.
According to the police, the man has been charged with disseminating “inflammatory information” on social media. Chief Superintendent Lee Kwai-Wah of the National Security Department told the media that the man incited hatred towards the Hong Kong SAR government and the central government, such as describing the central and SAR governments as the “instigators of chaos in Hong Kong” and asserting that the central government’s support for Hong Kong in the face of disasters is merely “performance.”
Furthermore, the man is also accused of leaking information related to national security investigations, as per the police statement.
Lee Kwai-Wah mentioned that on December 2, the man was invited to the Mong Kok Police Station to assist in an alleged national security case. Despite being warned not to disclose any information publicly, the police discovered the following day that he had divulged some details of the investigation on social media platforms. The police believe that the man was attempting to tip off other individuals involved in the case.
Since the implementation of the National Security Law in Hong Kong by the Chinese Communist Party at the end of June 2020, the law has become a tool for the CCP and the Hong Kong government to suppress dissenting voices. Authorities have been making arrests under charges of incitement, which has sparked condemnation from the international community.
The cause of the Horace Garden fire that occurred on November 26, which resulted in multiple casualties, remains unknown even after more than ten days have passed. This tragic event has spurred discussions about government accountability among the public. Subsequently, the Hong Kong Police Force and the National Security Department have been conducting arrests under violations of the National Security Law.
Recent reports from Hong Kong media have covered other arrest incidents, although the authorities have not confirmed them publicly. According to media outlets such as “Hong Kong 01,” over the past weekend, citizens spontaneously formed the “Tai Po Horace Garden Fire Concern Group” and initiated a petition online demanding a thorough investigation of the incident. One of the petition initiators was arrested by the National Security Police on November 29 for alleged incitement.
The petition by the “Tai Po Horace Garden Fire Concern Group” put forth “four major demands,” including the establishment of an independent inquiry commission, thorough investigation of potential collusion, revisiting the engineering supervision system, vigorously addressing regulatory negligence, and holding government officials accountable.
As reported by Hong Kong TVB, following the arrest of the initiators of the petition demanding accountability on the “four major demands,” on November 30, another man and woman were detained by the National Security Department for allegedly “inciting hatred towards the government.” These two individuals are former Hong Kong legislator Cheung Kam-Hung and a female volunteer who distributed supplies at the scene of the fire.
In response to these arrest actions, some netizens on social media platform X criticized, “Do human rights still exist in today’s Hong Kong? People speaking up about the fire are being arrested!”