Fair exhibitors advised to remove 'sensitive' books and abide by law

Alysha Bibi

The Trade Development Council has reminded exhibitors at the Hong Kong Book Fair to abide by national security laws after the organizer advised the removal of five books by former lawmaker Shiu Ka-chun and veteran journalist Allan Au Ka-lun from shelves.

According to Ng Chi-ching, a representative of publisher Bbluesky, the HKTDC had repeatedly approached the company prior to the start of the seven-day book fair to "remind" it to remove two sensitive books authored by Au and Shiu, despite these books being allowed in last year's fair.

On Saturday, HKTDC staff insisted that a total of five books be removed, including "The Last Faith," "Turbulence" and "2047 Nights" by Au, as well as "The Psychology of Imprisonment" and "Words from Within the Prison" by Shiu.

The HKTDC claimed the cited books contained "sensitive" content without specifying the reasons, saying they had received "complaints" about the material.

Ng expressed difficulty in understanding the "red line" of what constitutes "sensitive" content, as the organizer's guidelines were unclear and ambiguous.

Citing safety concerns, Bbluesky had to temporarily remove four of the five books, though they felt the removal of Au's "Turbulence" was unreasonable as it merely recounted the writer's travel experience.

It is also believed that another local book exhibitor, Boundary Bookstore, had received instructions from the HKTDC to remove "sensitive" books, including works by Au, Chinese poet and writer Liu Waitong, and writer Lee Chi-leung.

In response, the HKTDC told The Standard it had reminded exhibitors "to comply with the fair's rules and regulations, as well as all Hong Kong laws, including the National Security Law."

It added: "We will handle any complaints about suspected violations accordingly, and may ask exhibitors to cease displaying and selling certain items."

New People's Party lawmaker and former security secretary Lai Tung-kwok, who attended his book launch event at the fair yesterday, said the concerned books can still be sold in Hong Kong and that the authors' intended messages have already been adequately conveyed.

Lai advised exhibitors to comply with the regulations, which give the HKTDC the right to request the withdrawal of books deemed unsuitable for the fair, separate from the issue of whether the books can be sold in Hong Kong.