The European Union has expressed concern over the "further narrowing" of space for civil society in Hong Kong, citing the city’s Democratic Party’s plan to disband and the suspension of research by an independent pollster.
“We are aware of pressure put on the Democratic Party to disband, ... the ability of the people of Hong Kong to exercise their rights,” Anitta Hipper, the lead spokesperson for foreign affairs and security policy of the EU, said on Saturday on Twitter, now known as X. “Journalists and rights-based civil society organisations are under increasing pressures, including the Hong Kong Journalist[s] Association. The European Union urges the Hong Kong authorities to protect the ability of the people of Hong Kong to exercise their rights.” HKFP has reached out to the Hong Kong authorities for comment, but did not receive a response as of Monday morning.
Hipper’s comments came after the Democratic Party, once Hong Kong’s largest opposition party in the legislature, announced last week it would take steps to disband. A special task force will study the process for disbandment, party chair Lo Kin-hei said, but the decision still needs to go through a vote by the party’s approximately 400 members. Veteran party member Fred Li told a radio programme last week of his conversation with an unnamed contact from the Chinese Communist Party who had suggested the Democratic Party ought to disband ahead of the upcoming Legislative Council (LegCo) elections in December.
Earlier this month, HKPORI – the Hong Kong Public Opinion Research Institute, which conducts regular polling on government officials’ ratings – announced it would suspend all self-funded research and may “close down,” weeks after CEO Robert Chung was investigated by national security police on suspicion of assisting a wanted fugitive.
The Hong Kong Journalists Association (HKJA) last week reported its venue booking for its annual fundraising gala was cancelled by a hotel without explanation, after another hotel had earlier terminated the press union’s booking, citing what it described as an “unstable power supply” caused by a water leak.
Isabelle Rome, ambassador for human rights of France, expressed similar concerns on Saturday, stating, “Dismayed to see the space for civil society and checks and balances in #HongKong continues to shrink, with allegations of political pressures on the Democratic Party to disband.”
Since Beijing imposed the national security law on Hong Kong in 2020, dozens of political and civil society groups have disappeared. The pro-democracy Civic Party, once the city’s second-largest opposition party, officially folded back in March 2024. The Democratic Party, founded in 1994, is regarded as a moderate liberal party with less radical views than its localist counterparts. Yet, the party no longer holds any seats either in LegCo or the city's district councils due to the electoral overhaul mandatorily requiring “patriots” to rule. Many of its members have been jailed or detained on national security charges, including prominent figures such as Helena Wong, Lam Cheuk-ting, and former chairs Wu Chi-wai and Albert Ho.
The situation paints a concerning picture of the political climate in Hong Kong, emphasizing the heavy toll exacted on civil society and the democratic framework by the enforcement of stringent laws and external pressures. The international community watches closely, with calls for protecting fundamental rights and freedoms echoing from global leaders.