The proposed legislation the diocese is referring to is Article 23, a locally developed national security bill that Hong Kong is fast-tracking into law.

It follows the one Beijing imposed in 2020 after quashing pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong.

The bill is expected to be put to a legislature vote within days.

About the new law

The new law proposes a maximum jail term of 14 years for anyone who knows someone will commit treason but fails to report it to the police. In a three-sentence statement published on its website, the Diocese of Hong Kong says citizens "have an obligation to ensure national security".

However, according to the Diocese, this does not apply to Catholics who confess their sins.

The diocese also says that fears such a law could force Catholic priests to divulge information they heard in Confession to authorities are unnecessary.

Confessions to priests will remain confidential the diocesan office confirms.

Voiced concerns

UK-based activist group Hong Kong Watch has said this "directly threatens religious freedom" because it could compromise the confidentiality of confession.

The group thought it would force priests to reveal what was said in the confessional.

Hong Kong authorities defended the law's proposed criminal offence - which used to be called "misprision of treason".

Officials say it has long existed in the city and other common law countries. It does not have "anything to do with freedom of religion".

Responding to a lawmaker's question last week, Secretary for Justice Paul Lam said it would be "very difficult to create exceptions" for people like clergy and social workers regarding the offence.

Source

• Catholic News Agency
• UCANews.com
• South China Morning Post

Beijing imposed a sweeping national security law in 2020 to snuff out pro-democracy demonstrations.

The security law has effectively erased reminders of China's bloody suppression of the protests in the Chinese capital 33 years ago.

Candlelit vigils have been banned, a Tiananmen museum has been forced to close and statues have been pulled down.

The Hong Kong Catholic diocese announced that it would no longer hold a memorial Mass to pray for the victims of the massacre.

The annual Catholic masses were one of the last ways for citizens of Hong Kong to come together publicly to remember the deadly clampdown in Beijing on 4 June 1989, when the Chinese government set tanks and troops on peaceful demonstrators.

But this year, they too have been cancelled over fears of falling foul of Hong Kong authorities.

"We find it very difficult under the current social atmosphere," said Rev Martin Ip, chaplain of the Hong Kong Federation of Catholic Students, one of the organisers.

"Our bottom line is that we don't want to breach any law in Hong Kong," he said.

The church's move comes after the candlelight vigil that once featured thousands marking the anniversary at an outdoor park was banned in 2020 and 2021. At the time, authorities suggested that the coronavirus pandemic was the cause of the cancellation.

The Catholic Church's memorial Masses were the last form of organised commemoration in the city.

The "Pillar of Shame" in the University of Hong Kong (HKU), an eight-metre-high sculpture by Danish artist Jens Galschiot, was dismantled, tucked into a cargo container and left on an HKU-owned plot of rural land.

At Lingnan University, a wall relief by artist Chen Weiming was banished to an underground storage room.

His "Goddess of Democracy" statue at the Chinese University of Hong Kong was sent to a secretive "safe place".

"They are trying to wipe out a shameful episode in history when the state committed a crime on its people," Chen said.

Instead, the space for remembering the crackdown now lies outside Hong Kong, with exiled dissidents setting up their own museums in the US and activists planning to resurrect the Pillar of Shame in Taiwan.

On June 4, vigils will be held globally, with rights group Amnesty International coordinating candlelit vigils in 20 cities "to demand justice and show solidarity for Hong Kong".

Tiananmen Square survivor Zhou Fengsuo, who lives in the US, said that in recent years he had seen more people joining such events in the west, including recently emigrated young people from Hong Kong.

"I am grateful that Hong Kong for the last 30 or so years has carried the torch of commemorating Tiananmen," Zhou said. "Now, it's our job to do it outside of Hong Kong."

Sources

The Guardian

The Washington Post

Bishop-elect Stephen Chow Sau-yan told journalists that he did not think it would be wise to comment on especially controversial issues, particularly on China, the day after his appointment.

"That would be rash," he said. "But it is not because I am afraid, but, I think, I believe that prudence is also a virtue."

During the 45-minute press conference, organized by the Diocese of Hong Kong, Chow responded to questions about religious freedom in Hong Kong.

This is at a time when the region is being tested after the passage of national security laws.

"For me, religious freedom is a basic right," Chow said.

He added that he believed Cardinal John Tong Hon, the diocese's apostolic administrator since January 2019, had encouraged the government not to forget the importance of allowing the practice of all faiths.

With "Beijing, I believe that we must also start also with a sense of - we don't assume they are enemies. So how can we, through our faith have some dialogue, have some understanding together," the bishop-elect said.

The people of Hong Kong have historically enjoyed freedom of worship and evangelization. While in mainland China there is a long history of persecution for Christians who run afoul of the government.

The Diocese of Hong Kong has been without a permanent bishop since January 2019. Since then, millions of people in Hong Kong, including many Catholics, participated in large-scale pro-democracy protests.

The Chinese government also gained the power to suppress the movement with the passage of national security laws.

When asked if he would publicly mark the June 4 anniversary of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests, the bishop-elect said that this "depends on the legal requirements."

Chow said the church will adopt a position of "passive co-operation" in politics as the city grapples with the fall-out from months of protest and the imposition of a wide-ranging national security law by Beijing.

"I pray for China. I pray for all those who have passed in 1989."

Chow said he thought that "listening and empathy" was very important to heal the divisions within Hong Kong. He added that "unity is not the same as uniformity."

"I've just been appointed. I really have no grand plan of how to unify. But, I do believe there is a God, and God wants us to be united," he said.

Sources

Catholic News Agency

Hong Kong Free Press

America Magazine

The bill has resulted in massive protests.

Church leaders are supporting the protests which are calling for the withdrawal of a controversial extradition bill and the resignation of the Chinese territory's leader.

Although Hong Kong's chief executive Carrie Lam said last week that she had suspended the proposed extradition law in the formerly British, now Chinese territory, an estimated two million people turned out to protest last weekend.

After the rally, Auxiliary Bishop Joseph Ha Chi-shing of Hong Kong participated in an ecumenical prayer meeting outside the Legislative Council building with thousands of young Christians.

Ha reminded the faithful that the protesters were Christians first.

"Even though the government did many things that we don't like and were very wrong, we cannot demonize them, because this is not our faith request," he said.

"No matter how long they stay, I will continue to stay with them," he said. "All we want is to have the freedom to which everyone is entitled and no longer live in fear".

A particular feature throughout the protests has been the hymn "Sing Hallelujah to the Lord". It was sung during impromptu prayer meetings along the route, at roadblocks and during a gathering of protesters outside the legislature building and during tense stand-offs with the police.

Many Christians said they felt empowered by a pervasive sense of God while non-Christian demonstrators said they were also touched by a feeling of love and peace through the singing of the hymn.

About 11 percent of Hong Kong's residents are Christian, including 390,000 Catholics, representing about 5 percent of the population.

A Catholic activist said he believed there would have been more bloodshed during the mass protests if Catholic and Protestant clergy had not at times "acted as a barrier" between the riot police and angry young protesters, who joined in singing "Sing Hallelujah."

Source

• The Tablet
• Vatican News
• Sydney Morning Herald
• America Magazine
• NCR Online
• Image: UCA News