Jimmy Lai, the founder of the Apple Daily, was arrested, detained, and charged with fraud. This is the second time he has been arrested since the Hong Kong National Security Law came into effect at the end of June this year. The overall situation does not seem optimistic. This is the most typical accusation by the Chinese regime, also another tactic deployed by Beijing to restrain Hong Kong. If you are in China, fictional charges may come one after another. This is just a signal, which may eventually lead to a more serious infringement of the freedom of speech in Hong Kong.

The history of Hong Kong has been rewritten since the Anti-Extradition Movement in April. The destiny of the entire city of Hong Kong runs counter to the political trajectory of Taiwan. It used to be the “Floating City” coveted by Taiwanese intellectuals, but now it has become a global nightmare. It is now a place with a regime that can use military force to break into university campuses, where its chief executive can arrest students and even kill them with guns. Xi Jinping hasn’t changed his colors, and Carrie Lam doesn’t know shame. This is already a savage rule that knows no civilization.

After 38 years of martial law, Taiwan has now become the country in the entire Chinese-speaking region with the highest degree of freedom of speech. However, destiny has made Hong Kong lose its status as a free port after the handover to China. History is always full of irony. The people of Taiwan have not only regained freedom of speech, but also been enjoying direct election of their president. The courage of the Apple Daily to speak up in Hong Kong seems to have become intolerable to Beijing. If even students would suffer harsh punishment and severe penalties, the freedom of speech represented by Lai is of course beyond the tolerance of Beijing. It is not surprising that they charged Lai with “fraud” this time. Beijing has fabricated too many crimes in Hong Kong. Even if it exhausts its wisdom, Beijing could no longer wipe out the value of human rights.

Under the guise of “One Country, Two Systems,” Beijing’s control over Hong Kong has become increasingly strict. The outbreak of the Anti-Extradition Movement and the announcement of the amendment of the Fugitive Offenders Ordinance last February have ignited the will of resistance among countless students, but countless young lives have also been sacrificed. Now that it is One Country, One System, Hong Kong is even more miserable than the mainland in some moments. Under the long-term rule of the Communist Party, the Chinese have developed a set of survival rules because they have lost their freedom of speech since the beginning. The prison has developed its own ecosystem. Hong Kong only tasted the loss of freedom after the handover in 1997. Too many lives have been lost in the Hong Kong Anti-Extradition Movement. However, all the attempts to crush have not yet scared away students. They still dare to speak up, and they still stand on the front line of the resistance movement. The young generation knows very well that there is only so much territory left for their freedom of speech, and they have reached the point of no return. They can only keep on fighting to survive.

This time, the founder of the Apple Daily was arrested for “fraud.” This is similar to the tactic deployed by the Kuomintang to dominate Taiwan under martial law. You can be “legally” arrested for just any random crime, and they even declare that you will be detained until next April for trial. The arrest of a newspaperman is a significant incident in a democratic country. It is not only the arrest of the newspaperman, but the violation of freedom of speech. If there is no risk of fleeing, the authority cannot abuse its power so rashly.

What really worries the Chief Executive of Hong Kong is the influence of the voice of the Apple Daily, which goes way beyond the control of Beijing. A newspaper is no longer just a newspaper, but the torch of freedom of speech. A newspaperman can thus frighten the chief executive, and also Xi Jinping. Intervention in the name of “National Security,” in particular, reflects the fragility of those in power in China. China claims to be a giant country, but at the heart, it is a dwarf.

Hong Kong is no longer the Pearl of the Orient. Even though the high-rise buildings are brightly lit, its democratic life has begun to dim. More than 20 years after the handover in 1997, the people of Hong Kong have lost too much, and their times now are completely inferior to the ones during the British colonial period. The political awakening of Hong Kong students should be the biggest hope for this “Floating City.” Lai’s charge of “fraud” is indeed exaggerated. The power of speech is not something that a gigantic regime can bear. Deng Xiaoping’s promise that “Hong Kong will not change for 50 years” is really the biggest fraud.

The entire ecosystem of freedom of speech in Hong Kong cannot be tolerated at all by an authoritarian regime. The fate of a newspaper very accurately exposes China’s lies and deception. Beijing has already violated its promise of “One Country, Two Systems” by appointing a chief executive in Hong Kong. Lai was only sacrificed to intimidate, and in fact they intend to curtail the freedom of speech. The power unleashed by a newspaper far exceeds any weapon of violence.

(Chen Fang-ming, Professor of Taiwanese Literature Research Institute, National Chengchi University, Taiwan)

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