Hong Kong Police Arrest Two in Crackdown on Seditious Publications, Targeting Bookstore Owner
HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong police moved Wednesday to arrest two people on suspicion of selling seditious publications and channeling funds from foreign political organizations, marking the latest enforcement action under the city’s 2024 national security legislation.
The government, in a statement released early Thursday, did not name those taken into custody. But local media outlets, including the Chinese-language daily Ming Pao, cited unidentified sources identifying one as Leticia Wong, the owner of Hunter Bookstore and a former pro-democracy district councilor.
Wong, who has remained vocal even as many leading activists were jailed following the massive anti-government protests of 2019, represents a lingering voice of dissent in Hong Kong. If her arrest is confirmed, it would be widely interpreted as another step to tighten control over expression in the Asian financial hub, where Beijing has promised to preserve Western-style civil liberties since the 1997 handover but critics say those guarantees are wearing thin.
The Associated Press could not independently verify the identities of those arrested. Police did not respond to emailed queries, and Wong could not be reached by phone.
The arrests come a week before the 29th anniversary of Hong Kong’s return to Chinese rule, a period that often attracts heightened scrutiny of government actions. In recent years, authorities have stepped up enforcement of national security laws, targeting individuals and outlets seen as challenging the government’s narrative.
According to Thursday's statement, the two detainees are in charge of a shop in the Sham Shui Po district, where Wong’s bookstore operates. They were arrested on suspicion of sedition under the 2024 national security law and for dealing with assets known or believed to represent proceeds of an indictable offense under a separate ordinance.
Last year, a pro-Beijing newspaper report accused an independent book fair held at Wong’s bookstore of having “soft resistance” connotations, highlighting plans to sell a biography of jailed pro-democracy activist Jimmy Lai. Lai, founder of the now-shuttered Apple Daily newspaper, is serving a long sentence under national security charges.
Police investigations, the statement said, showed the pair are suspected of displaying seditious items and selling publications with seditious content, including materials inciting hatred against Hong Kong’s government, judiciary and law enforcement agencies. They are also suspected of having received remittances funded by foreign political organizations.
The statement did not specify which publications or organizations were involved.
Wong previously told the AP she felt mounting pressure. In an interview last year, she said her records showed authorities had taken measures against her shop 92 times between July 2022 and June 2025 — including inspections, conspicuous patrols and warning letters. An anonymous letter sent to an organization that had planned an event at her shop prompted them to cancel, she added.
In March, police arrested the owner and staff of another bookstore on suspicion of selling seditious publications, including the biography of Lai. They were later released on bail.
The Hong Kong government insists both the 2020 and 2024 security laws are essential for stability, arguing that freedom of speech remains firmly protected in the city. But human rights groups and activists say the laws have been used to silence dissent, with arrests and prosecutions rising steadily since their enactment.