Pillar of Shame, Goddess of Democracy, Tiananmen Mural Removed by Three Universities in Hong Kong

Washington, DC (December 24, 2021) -  In response to the removal of the Pillar of Shame from The University of Hong Kong and other Tiananmen memorial statues and murals from The Chinese University of Hong Kong and Lingnan University, the Campaign for Hong Kong releases the following statement from founder and president, Samuel Chu:

 “When the Pillar of Shame was first erected, it was a public symbol and a ‘canary in the coal mine’ ahead of the July 1, 1997 handover. Would there still be freedom of speech post-handover? Will Hong Kong remain unchanged for 50 years as promised? Would Beijing allow the ongoing public commemoration of Tiananmen? And so it has stood, for the past 24 years, at The University of Hong Kong.

There might not be a more timely and apt metaphor to the current state of civil and political rights in Hong Kong than the fate of the Pillar of Shame. Its creation in 1997 was a touchstone for freedom in Hong Kong; its destruction in 2021 is a tombstone for freedom in Hong Kong.

The removal of the Pillar of Shame and other Tiananmen memorials at three different universities under the cover of darkness and on Christmas’ eve, when students are away, shows that Beijing’s shame and cowardice run deep. The fact that three leading universities willingly sacrifice their reputation and academic freedom to further the Chinese-state-sponsored history-erasing propaganda makes this even more outrageous and shocking. 

The Goddess of Democracy was the most important political symbol for me as a teenager. I watched it being erected at Tiananmen Square on TV for the first time. I visited the first replica in Hong Kong shortly after. I had a mini model produced by the Hong Kong Alliance on my bookshelf throughout my career and adult life. The memory and the resolve to fight for democracy cannot be erased no matter how hard Beijing tries. Removing the public statues only reveals the statue-shaped hole in the hearts of minds of all of us.

It is sad but fitting that these public memorials are now removed, erased, and hidden in unspecified locations. Like the many pro-democracy leaders and activists who are behind bars - accused, removed, and jailed indefinitely for doing what they have always done - their fate and future now uncertain.”

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