Hong Kong Asks Court to Stop Protest Anthem From Circulating Online
After “Glory to Hong Kong” emerged as the unofficial anthem of pro-democracy demonstrators in 2019, the government of Hong Kong has tried to stifle its use. It has banned the song from schools. When it was played in error last year instead of the Chinese national anthem at a rugby match in South Korea, the Hong Kong government demanded an investigation.
This week the authorities asked a court to ban the public performance and online dissemination of “Glory to Hong Kong.” The move could ensnare U.S. technology companies like Google and set up the first legal test of how much control the Hong Kong government can wield over online content.
Hong Kong is seeking to prohibit the distribution or reproduction of the song “in any way,” including adaptations of its “melody or lyrics,” the government said in a statement on Tuesday. It said that the song had been used to “insult” the Chinese national anthem, “The March of the Volunteers,” causing “serious damage to the country” and to Hong Kong. A date for the court to hear the request has not been set.
The Hong Kong authorities had previously criticized Google for displaying the protest song under search results for Hong Kong’s national anthem.
Source: The New York Times
