Hong Kong University covers up Tiananmen Square Memorial

The University of Hong Kong (HKU), the city's oldest university covered up one of the last public memorials to the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown on Saturday.

This comes as Beijing is continuing to silence any form of dissent in the Asian financial hub after imposing a sweeping national security law and other regressive moves in the city's legislation.

The operation took place in broad daylight ahead of Lunar New Year, with students and staff away on break, Hong Kong Free Press reported. No prior public notice was given in this regard.

Last month, workers at the HKU had removed the Tiananmen Massacre statue, widely known as the Pillar of Shame, months after the university had said the statue must go.

This monument was created by a Danish artist in memory of those killed in the Tiananmen Square crackdown in Beijing in 1989.

The university had said that the decision had been made due to the potential safety issues resulting from the fragile statue and potential legal risks for the organization.

Sophie Richardson, Human Rights Watch's China Director, had said slammed the Chinese government for being afraid of a statute.

"The world's second-largest economy. Largest standing army. Permanent member of the UN Security Council. Nevertheless, China govt afraid of a statute and what it represents, stealing it away at night, under wraps...pathetic," Richardson had tweeted last month.

( With inputs from ANI )

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