Arab News Japan

TOKYO: Nearly 300 Hong Kongers residing in Japan took to the streets in central Tokyo on Saturday to commemorate the second anniversary of the 2019 anti-China protests.

The demonstrators — dressed in black — gathered in Tokyo’s Shinjuku district to garner support for their “pro-democracy movement.

Many of them carried yellow umbrellas following the “Umbrella Movement” for Hong Kong’s independence.

One protester said that more than 100 Hong Kong students currently residing in Japan are among the protestors. He said they fear for their safety if they have to return to Hong Kong where the national security law is in place.

As the law claims jurisdiction over actions taken overseas, most participants hid their faces with caps, dark glasses and masks.

During the march, demonstrators chanted slogans against the Chinese Communist party, rejecting the doctrine, “one country, two systems.”

Organizers released a statement in which they said, “Hong Kong is now in darkness, but we believe dawn will come one day if we persist with our fight patiently. We will not give up.”

They chanted slogans banned in China such as “Liberate Hong Kong.”

The rally was part of a global campaign for Hong Kong held this weekend in major cities in over 20 countries worldwide including London, Washington, Melbourne and Bangkok.

“Hong Kong lost its freedom, and it is difficult for the residents to take action, but they have not given up. So it is now more important than ever for us overseas Hong Kongers to speak up. I hope people in Japan and the world can stand with Hong Kong,” a participant in the Tokyo rally said.