Hong Kong Activists Raise Thousands for Anti-Extradition Bill Newspaper Ads
Hong Kong Activists Raise Thousands for Anti-Extradition Bill Newspaper Ads
(Bloomberg) -- Hong Kong activists raised HK$6.7 million ($858,000) in nine hours in a bid to plaster global newspapers with ads demanding the withdrawal of a controversial extradition bill ahead of the G-20 summit.
A group of self-organized Internet users said it planned to issue print advertisements in major papers on Thursday and Friday to protest the legislation as leaders gather for the Group of 20 meetings in Japan. The amount raised signaled continued support for demonstrations protesting the law and calling for the resignation of embattled leader Carrie Lam.
The group said it had confirmed ads with the New York Times and the Financial Times, and was contacting other publications including the Washington Post, the Australian and the Japan Times.
The ad will read “Save Hong Kong at G20” and feature text of a petition letter calling for a withdrawal of the bill, which would allow extradition from Hong Kong to China for the first time and which Lam suspended in the wake of the demonstrations. It will also repeat regular protester demands, including the release of people detained during the protests and an independent commission into force used by police.
“We are a group of concerned citizens who have been among the two million protesters marching on the streets of Hong Kong,” the letter reads. “This is our sincere plea for your help to defend our sovereignty and freedoms.”
The campaign is another move by protesters to ratchet up pressure on Chinese leader Xi Jinping and keep their cause in the global spotlight ahead of the G-20, including rallies Wednesday in central Hong Kong. But China has taken a hard line in discussing recent events in the city at the summit, with Assistant Foreign Minister Zhang Jun saying Monday that it would’t allow such talks to take place.
--With assistance from Natalie Lung.
To contact the reporter on this story: Shawna Kwan in Hong Kong at wkwan35@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Brendan Scott at bscott66@bloomberg.net, Karen Leigh, Lulu Yilun Chen
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