Search for Google answer to court injunction on protest song

The government is still waiting for tech giant Google to clarify whether it will remove the protest song Glory to Hong Kong after the Court of Appeal granted an interim injunction last Wednesday, Secretary for Justice Paul Lam Ting-kwok said.

Speaking on a radio program yesterday, Lam said the interim injunction to ban the song - which became hugely popular during the anti-government protests in 2019 - helps define the "red line."

Without naming Google, he said the government has already reached out to the search engine giant for a response regarding taking down the song from its platforms, as it promised to follow up if the government managed to obtain a court order.

"I believe everyone is very anxious and hope that internet service providers will take action to respond as quickly as possible. Do they really follow the company's policy [to align with court orders] and keep their word?" Lam questioned.

Addressing public concerns about using music platforms, he said the purpose of the injunction was made clear by the court that only using the protest song to incite seditious acts is illegal, believing it will increase public awareness of the unlawful behavior.

"If you make audiences have touching feelings when hearing the song, you may have an unlawful purpose to win more people's support for the independence of HK or to impress others that HK is not a special administrative region but a sovereign state.

"The injunction is to provide a stronger deterrence."

Lam added that the injunction, which is also not retroactive, aims to prevent the public from engaging in illegal behavior. People have nothing to worry about as long as they do not use the song to perform unlawful acts.

He also explained the necessity of issuing the injunction from the perspective of the legal profession, saying it is a matter of course to safeguard national security.

In addition, Lam hit out at Election Committee lawmaker Paul Tse Wai-chun, saying: "You will know what you can and can't do if you understand the law rationally, and just stop being a worrywart."

Tse earlier expressed concerns about a lack of debate and the emergence of an echo chamber at the Legislative Council. He was also criticized by Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu for saying Hong Kong is giving the impression that its policies take into consideration the views of mainlanders on social media platforms like Xiaohongshu.

Lam said there was no law in Hong Kong that prohibits criticism of the government, only that it is illegal to incite the subversion of state power.

He said Hong Kong is a vibrant city where people can speak freely, as long as the opinions are driven by love toward the SAR instead of extreme remarks.

"The government needs to know itself before it can win a battle, so it must not adopt an ostrich policy on problems and it must have the ability to reflect itself. I believe that all our colleagues are broadminded."

stacy.shi@singtaonewscorp.com