Hong Kong Police Raid Two Bookstores, Arrest Five Over Alleged 'Seditious' Publications

HONG KONG, July 16: Hong Kong police have raided two independent bookstores and arrested five people on suspicion of displaying and selling "seditious" publications, marking the latest crackdown under the city's expanded national security laws.

Police searched two bookstores in the Mong Kok district on Wednesday after customs officials reported finding allegedly seditious books in a shipment sent to Hong Kong from overseas. Authorities did not identify the stores in their official statement, but local media reported the raids targeted Have A Nice Stay, founded by former journalists, and Greenfield Book Store.

The five suspects — two men and three women — were arrested on suspicion of violating Hong Kong's 2024 national security law. The alleged offense carries a maximum prison sentence of seven years.

According to police, the seized publications contained material that allegedly incited hatred against the Hong Kong government, judiciary and law enforcement agencies. Officials did not disclose the titles of the books involved.

The raid on Have A Nice Stay came one day after the bookstore announced it would close on Aug. 30, citing financial difficulties and "uncertainties regarding the social environment."

The operation marks the third wave of arrests targeting independent bookstores this year, following similar actions against employees of Hunter Bookstore in June and Book Punch in March.

Rights groups condemned the raids, saying they reflect an intensifying campaign against freedom of expression. Amnesty International said the use of sedition laws against bookstores demonstrates how Hong Kong's national security legislation is being used to silence dissent and eliminate spaces for free thought and debate.

Taiwan President Lai Ching-te also voiced concern, saying independent bookstores play an essential role in safeguarding ideas and that "thought and writing should not be imprisoned because of political pressure."

Hong Kong's independent bookstore sector has sharply declined since Beijing imposed a sweeping national security law in 2020 following pro-democracy protests, with authorities further strengthening security legislation in 2024.