Independent bookshops in Hong Kong are closing due to tightening laws. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing BBC News.
Chen Zhu travels from Guangzhou to Hong Kong every month. Her main destination is Hunter Bookstore. Founded four years ago by a former councillor, the shop stocks books authorities consider sensitive: memoirs of Hong Kong democracy activists, George Orwell's Animal Farm, and Hajime Isayama's manga Attack on Titan.
For 23-year-old Zhu, the shop is a gateway to a freer world where she can find answers to forbidden questions. When she learned the shop had been raided in late June, she broke into tears: "I was devastated."
Hong Kong saw a boom in independent bookshops after the 2019 pro-democracy protests. But as China's control over the city has grown, they struggle to survive. Beijing defends its National Security Law as essential for stability, but many Hong Kongers and rights groups say it has crushed free speech.
On 24 June, police searched Hunter Bookstore and arrested owner Letitia Wong, 33, and a 32-year-old man on charges of sedition and money laundering. They deny the charges and have been released on bail. In March, the owner of Book Punch and three employees were arrested on the same charges. On 15 July, during the annual Hong Kong Book Fair, police searched two more shops, Greenfield Bookstore and Have a Nice Stay, arresting five people for sedition.
At the end of July, Greenfield posted on social media: "Our store will be closing after our lease expires. Thank you for walking with us, through wind and rain, for 50 years since our opening." It was the third independent bookshop to shut within a month.
These bookshops have a loyal following not only in Hong Kong but also among mainland Chinese readers. Some, like Zhu, travel to the city for a single book. 19-year-old Li from Shanghai says: "I can see so many possibilities, and existing ideas can be challenged."
When Zhu started university in 2021, she became curious about lesser-discussed chapters of Chinese history, such as the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre, a taboo topic. She sought out films about the event, but neither Summer Palace nor Lan Yu satisfied her curiosity. She set her mind on finding The Unburned Book by Taiwanese poet Yang Du.
In 2023, as soon as the China-Hong Kong border reopened after the pandemic, she went to Hong Kong to find it. At that time, independent bookshops were thriving. In Mong Kok there were Luck Win, Greenfield, Have a Nice Stay, Elmbook, Book Punch, and Word by Word. Zhu found The Unburned Book at Hunter.
Hong Kong, once a refuge for those fleeing China after 1989, commemorated the killings every year with a vigil. These gradually disappeared as new laws targeted political gatherings. 20-year-old Chris (name changed), who visited Hong Kong in early June, saw one bookstore displaying relevant books, white candles, and rolls of masking tape printed with "VI-IV" — a coded reference to 4 June.
These young people may not be from Hong Kong, but they feel a deep sense of belonging in these bookshops. But it's more than just about the books.