Explainer: Hong Kong’s national security crackdown – month 73

In July, Hong Kong's cultural sector came under scrutiny as two independent bookstores faced raids, staff arrests, and the seizure of books. The incident spread awareness globally, provoking reactions from book enthusiasts in Taiwan. Two days after the July 15 police operation, the government released a statement asserting that the five arrested individuals were suspected of engaging in sedition by attempting to incite hatred against the Hong Kong government, judiciary, and law enforcement bodies.

A woman, identified as a bookstore employee, was escorted away while wearing a t-shirt that read, "I am staff of a bookstore."

The government's legal justification for the raids stems from Article 23 of Hong Kong's homegrown security law, which targets individuals involved in "committing an act or acts that had a sedition intention." Hong Kong Customs had detected potentially seditious books among shipments from overseas, leading to the raid. Hong Kong Security Minister Chris Tang defended the actions, emphasizing that the law is uncompromising.

However, the authority declined to furnish a list of prohibited books, stating that bookstores must independently ensure that the titles they stock comply with the law.

Following the July 15 raids, Greenfield Bookstore, which had been in operation for 50 years since its establishment in 1976, issued a statement announcing its closure after the lease expired. The bookshop, located in Mong Kok, expressed gratitude for its 50-year run in a social media post. It did not disclose the precise date when its lease would terminate.

Greenfield is the third bookstore to announce its closure within a month, prompted by the police operations and financial hardships. The other two bookstores, Have a Nice Stay and Elmbook, also plan to cease their physical operations, citing similar reasons. The closures have raised concerns among book enthusiasts, particularly in Taiwan, where authorities are closely monitoring the movement of "banned books" from Hong Kong and urging local publishers to self-censor before shipping.