A song linked to the anti-government protests of 2019 that has been banned by Hong Kong authorities may soon be removed from streaming platforms by its UK, US and Canadian distributors, its producer has said.
The distribution of “Glory to Hong Kong” was banned by the Court of Appeal in May, which granted an interim injunction sought by Secretary for Justice Paul Lam Ting-kwok. The court found the song had become a “weapon” that could be used to arouse anti-government and separatist sentiment. Versions of the song disappeared and returned to major streaming platforms in the ensuing months.
The producers of the song, Dgxmusic, said on Instagram on Tuesday the song might be taken down again.
“Distributors from the UK, US, and Canada all ‘bowed’,” it said. “Glory to Hong Kong may fully disappear from streaming platforms very soon.”
A check by the Post found versions of the song by Dgxmusic had disappeared from Spotify and Apple Music but were still available through the Taiwan-based music streaming service KKBox.
Scotland-based EmuBands stopped distributing the song in May, telling the Post at the time the decision was based on the cost of hiring legal experts to assess the situation rather than bowing to censorship.
The Post also reported in June that US distributor Distrokid had stopped making the song available but without explaining the reason to Dgxmusic.
YouTube, owned by California-based Google, complied with the injunction order and blocked access to 32 clips listed in the court document. Some clips fitting the exemptions criteria – academic and journalistic purposes – were still available on the site.
Composed by protesters belonging to the online forum LIHKG, the song was released on YouTube at the height of the 2019 social unrest. It became widely recognised as the unofficial anthem of the protests.
The lyrics of the song call for Hongkongers to fight for freedom and include the slogan “liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times”. The slogan was later deemed by authorities to carry a secessionist meaning in the city’s first national security trial in 2021.
