Two Arrested in Hong Kong Over ‘Seditious’ Children’s Books
The stories about sheep and wolves have previously led to prison sentences.
Tyrone Siu/Reuters
Authorities in Hong Kong have arrested two men accused of possessing children’s picture books that have previously been deemed “seditious publications.” The men, aged 38 and 50, are thought to be the first people to be detained just for owning the books, which tell a story about sheep trying to stop wolves entering their village. In September, five speech therapists were each handed 19-month jail sentences for making the books, which authorities say are an allegory for Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement against Beijing. Human Rights Watch called the arrests a “shameful” attempt “to clamp down on peaceful dissent.”
This is shameful. Two men in Hong Kong have been arrested for owning children’s books considered seditious by the government.
— Human Rights Watch (@hrw) March 15, 2023
Hong Kong prosecutors have increasingly used the crime of “sedition” – an archaic, overly broad crime – to clamp down on peaceful dissent. pic.twitter.com/ON4LTwRK27
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