Torches and T-shirts: Hongkongers defy attempts to forget Tiananmen

Chan Po-ying, an activist and leader of League of Social Democrats, is detained by police officers at Causeway Bay near Victoria Park. Photograph: Sawayasu Tsuji/Getty Images

For the past three years, Hong Kong authorities have gone to great lengths to stop people from lighting candles in Victoria Park and publicly commemorating the Tiananmen Square massacre – an annual tradition tens of thousands of residents had kept alive for three decades since the bloody crackdown in 1989.

This year, the city took it a step further. On Sunday, in place of a mass vigil was a patriotic carnival held by pro-Beijing groups, celebrating the city’s return to Chinese rule with food booths, and dance and music performances. Colourful banners urged carnival goers to “taste the joy”. Instead of candles, volunteers handed out plush toys.