A leading Hong Kong university has removed a statue on its campus that for more than two decades has commemorated pro-democracy protesters killed during China's Tiananmen Square crackdown in 1989.
Late on Wednesday night, security guards at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) placed yellow barricades around the eight-metre high, two-tonne copper sculpture called the "Pillar of Shame" that commemorates those killed by Chinese authorities more than three decades ago.
Livestreams showed carts of rubble being transported away from the site of the statue and by 1am local time the entire statue had been dismantled.
"It's completely gone," Mithil Aggarwal said in a video documenting the removal.
The statue had been one of the few remaining public memorials in the former British colony to remember the bloody crackdown that is a taboo topic in mainland China, where it cannot be publicly commemorated.
A crane and at least one shipping container was brought into the campus as construction workers milled around the area, according to two Reuters reporters on the scene just after midnight local time. Loud construction noise could be heard, and white sheets were draped around the statue on all sides.
Local media outlet Citizen News reported the university council had voted to demolish the Pillar of Shame.
Several months ago, the university had sent a legal letter to the custodians of the statue asking for its removal.
HKU confirmed the statue had been removed and placed in storage after the operation was completed.
"The decision on the aged statue was based on external legal advice and risk assessment for the best interest of the University," the university said.
Its statement said no party had ever obtained approval to display the statue and also cited the colonial-era Crimes Ordinance in justifying its removal.
That law includes the crime of sedition and has been increasingly deployed by authorities - alongside a new national security law imposed by Beijing - to criminalise dissent.
'Totally shocked'
Danish sculptor Jens Galschiot, who created the statue, said in a statement he was "totally shocked" at this move against his private property and that he would "claim compensation for any damage to the sculpture".
The university's public affairs office gave no immediate response to a Reuters request for comment.
Some students said the move would severely undermine HKU's reputation.
"The university is a coward to do this action at midnight," said a 19-year-old student on the scene who gave his name as Chan.
"I feel very disappointed as it's a symbol of history. This university claims it advocates academic freedom yet it
can't even keep a historical monument."
The removal of the statue is the latest step targeting people or organisations affiliated with the sensitive June 4, 1989, date and events to mark it in the global financial hub.
Authorities have been clamping down in Hong Kong under a China-imposed national security law that is being used to suppress civil society, jail democracy campaigners and curb basic freedoms, including free speech.
Western governments have accused China of using the security law as a tool of repression and for reneging on its promises granted to the city to allow a high degree of autonomy under a "one country two systems" formula since its return from Britain to China in 1997.
Authorities say the law has restored order and stability to the city after massive street protests in 2019.
Additional reporting: AFP
