Tomorrow (4th) is the 33rd anniversary of the "June 4th Incident". The last June 4th Dimension Garden Candlelight Gala took place in 2019, and the number of participants was as high as 180,000.
However, with the outbreak of the new crown pneumonia in 2020, the June 4th candlelight rally in Victoria Park was not approved for the first time; last year was the first June 4th after the "Hong Kong National Security Law" came into effect, and the police directly blocked the Victoria Park.
The Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced this evening (June 3) that in response to the police's attention that some people have incited others to gather illegally in the Victoria Park area on June 4, and may use the relevant venues to carry out illegal activities, the Leisure and Cultural Services Department will hold an event on November 11 tonight. Parts of Victoria Park will be closed until 00:30 on June 5, and the areas that need to be temporarily closed include football fields, basketball courts, etc.
"Hong Kong 01" went to Victoria Park this afternoon to observe and found that the police officers on patrol had put on stab-proof vests.
In the Victoria Park Stadium where candlelight parties were held in the past, many iron horses, water horses and ice cream cones were placed next to the stadium.
▼On the eve of the 33rd anniversary of June Fourth on June 3rd, Victoria Park police officers wore stab-proof vests on patrol▼
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A reporter from "Hong Kong 01" visited Victoria Park this afternoon. The Victoria Park football stadium where candlelight evenings were held in the past, two of the six football stadiums were temporarily closed for maintenance. Both stadiums were surrounded by a layer of iron horses. In one of the closed stadiums, there were eight piles of iron horses, with about 10 to 20 in each pile.
At the same time, 20 to 30 ice cream cones were covered with banners.
The reporter also found that at least four piles of iron horses, three layers of stacked ice cream cones and about eight water horses had been placed in the rest area next to the stadium.
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There were police officers patrolling the scene in Victoria Park. All three patrol officers wore stab-proof vests and were equipped with pistols.
It is worth mentioning that last year, a police officer was stabbed outside the gate of Sogo Department Store on July 1 last year. A police officer in Causeway Bay was stabbed in the left back and the attacker committed suicide.
The management team has arranged for frontline police officers to wear tactical vests with stab-proof function.
The remaining four football fields are open to the public today
In addition, except for the two football fields that were closed for maintenance, the other four football fields are still open to the public.
Today, the Dragon Boat Festival public holiday, many citizens and friends gather to play basketball and basketball, and some parents bring their children to share the family.
There are also many foreign domestic helpers laying out picnic mats in the rest area outside the venue, chatting while eating snacks.
LCSD: Prevent people from using Victoria Park for unauthorised public gatherings
In the evening, a spokesman for the LCSD said that as the police noticed that some people were inciting others to gather illegally in the Victoria Park area on June 4 through different channels, the LCSD may use the venue for illegal activities, so the LCSD will be closed from 11pm tonight. Parts of Victoria Park will be closed until 00:30 on June 5 to prevent people from using Victoria Park for unauthorised public gatherings, affecting public safety and public order, and avoiding the risk of virus transmission caused by mass gatherings.
The LCSD pointed out that the areas that need to be temporarily closed include football fields, basketball courts, central lawns, fitness stations, jogging tracks, passages within the closed areas, some entrances and exits along Causeway Road, and the footbridge connecting to the Hong Kong Central Library. The department will notify the venue and facility hirers on June 4 about the venue closure arrangement.
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