Five arrested in Hong Kong bookstore raids in ‘seditious’ materials crackdown

A police officer stands at the entrance to the Have A Nice Stay independent bookstore after the officers raided the premises. Photograph: Catherine Lai/AFP/Getty Images View image in fullscreen A police officer stands at the entrance to the Have A Nice Stay independent bookstore after the officers raided the premises. Photograph: Catherine Lai/AFP/Getty Images Five arrested in Hong Kong bookstore raids in ‘seditious’ materials crackdown Third round of arrests linked to independent bookshops widely regarded as clampdown on dissent in territory Hong Kong authorities have raided two bookstores and arrested five people on suspicion of selling allegedly seditious publications, in the latest step targeting independent booksellers. Videos and photos from multiple media outlets on Wednesday showed officers wearing vests marked with “police” seizing boxes from the building that houses Have A Nice Stay, a bookshop founded by former journalists. AFP reporters saw officers also lead away a woman in handcuffs to a van. A few streets away a similar scene played out, with boxes taken from the building housing the Greenfield Book Store, according to a video by online news outlet The Collective. Police said in a statement they arrested two men and three women on suspicion of displaying and offering for sale items with “seditious intention”, breaching the 2024 national security law, after raiding two stores in the Mong Kok district, without identifying the locations. AFP reporters witnessed the raid on Have a Nice Stay, and local media, citing unnamed sources, said officers had searched the Greenfield Book Store. It is the third round of arrests linked to independent bookstores after similar operations in March and June that were widely seen as stifling dissent in the Asian financial hub. Hong Kong was once known for its freedom of publication and freedom of expression. Some Chinese residents crossed the border to buy books deemed to be too politically sensitive on the mainland. The city’s security chief, Chris Tang, told reporters on Thursday: “If you are a bookseller, you have a responsibility to ensure that the books you sell do not endanger national security.” “I believe booksellers bear this responsibility,” he added, comparing it to food vendors being required to ensure the goods they sell do not “contain poison or breach the law”. View image in fullscreen Police officers load confiscated items from independent bookstore Have a Nice Stay. Photograph: Tommy Wang/AFP/Getty Images The police statement said an investigation alleged the five people were suspected of displaying seditious materials and selling seditious publications on the premises. The publications included content that stirred up hatred against the city’s government, judiciary and law enforcement agencies, it said. Customs officials referred the case after the discovery of allegedly seditious books in a batch of goods shipped to Hong Kong from overseas, police said, without specifying titles. ‘Th