Hong Kong’s government officials have been under pressure from various activists to turn back the pro-Beijing legislation that has been enacted. This is viewed by many in the intelligence community as a powerplay by mainland China to impose its one-party control on the autonomous region of Hong Kong. Now in the pandemic era more than ever before the online space has been an effective way to apply pressure, provide anonymity, and organize demonstrations.
The use of social media allows demonstrators in these groups to put out a public opinion and have a discussion without being afraid of being jailed. A study found the significant importance of messaging apps and their importance in mobilizing demonstration efforts. Also, local forums have seen year-to-year growth driven by protests. One local forum had 12,000 users in July 2018 and now has over 120,000 active users. These forums are known for developing new initiatives, agendas, campaign ideas, and strategies. Pushing the ideas of a new policy and trying to establish an open conversation on what is best for the people of Hong Kong. This in itself is a new idea in China and something that is not particularly practiced on the mainland. However, Hong Kong has been accustomed to the privilege of free speech and the mainland wants to absolve its right to it. Hong Kong up until 1997 was a British colony, and then eventually returned back to Chinese rule developing a “two systems-one state” policy. However, China has given up on this policy and now has left Hong Kong in the current state of civil unrest.
The current online community of revolution is going against the grain of what the norm in China is. This currently would not be possible without the efforts of social media. Especially in the times of a pandemic making the community more accessible through online efforts. The movement in Hong Kong is truly trying everything it can to challenge the will of the communist party. It will be interesting to see if more mass mobilization will occur, and what will incur with the rest of this movement. As of two days ago, four pro-democracy officials in Hong Kong resigned after legislation to jail political adversaries that are a threat to national security. It will be interesting to follow the progression of this movement and where it will end up.