Museum, other assets of June 4 alliance frozen

Erin Chan

The police national security department has frozen assets of the disbanded alliance that organized the annual June 4 vigil, including the June 4th Museum's HK$8 million Mong Kok site.

The website of the virtual museum - launched on August 4 and telling the story of those who died in the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown - has also been blocked since Tuesday.

The Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China disbanded on Saturday and is in liquidation.

Its liquidator, former secretary Richard Tsoi Yiu-cheong, said the department sent him a notice confirming that police froze the museum's site and HK$2.2 million in 19 bank accounts on September 9 - the day they raided the museum.

Tsoi said the asset freeze will affect the alliance's disbandment and liquidation, adding it will request Secretary for Security Chris Tang Ping-keung to lift the order.

Police said the alliance has been allowed to keep certain items at the museum, including machinery, equipment, goods or articles.

They warned if the alliance breached the terms of the police asset freezing injunction, its members could be fined and face seven years in prison.

Meanwhile, two alliance members - Simon Leung Kam-wai and Chan To-wai - were denied bail yesterday.

Leung, 36, and Chan, 57, along with the alliance's three other members, have pleaded not guilty to one joint charge of failing to provide police information for probes under the national security law.

They have been remanded for three weeks since September 8.

Leung and Chan applied for bail for the second time at the High Court yesterday after the five were denied bail at West Kowloon Magistrates' Court earlier.

High Court judge Esther Toh Lye-ping rejected their submissions. The hearing has been adjourned to October 21.

The alliance's then-chairman, Lee Cheuk-yan, and the two vice chairmen, Tonyee Chow Hang-tung and Albert Ho Chun-yan, were charged with incitement to subversion.

They were remanded after appearing in court on September 10.

Separately, Tang said the Civil Human Rights Front's dissolution would not clear it of its criminal liabilities.

The 19-year-old activist platform behind the annual protest on July 1 disbanded on August 15 this year, citing authorities' political suppression.

Speaking in the Legislative Council yesterday, Tang said police investigations would not stop because of the disbandment.

"The platform did not explain the source of its funds to police officers in time, so police are currently carrying out investigations," he said.

erin.chan@singtaonewscorp.com