For the first time in 30 years, the Hong Kong police have officially put a ban on the annual Tiananmen Square vigil at the city's Victoria Park, citing social distancing reasons and health concerns amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic outbreak.

Notably, June 4 is marked in Hong Kong with an annual activity, called "Vindicate 4 June and Relay the Torch", in memorial and to mourn the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 (also known as the June Fourth Incident). The vigil takes place in Hong Kong Victoria Park and is organised by the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements in China.

According to the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the vigil's organisers have said that alliance members would still enter Victoria Park to observe a moment of silence that night. They have also called on the public to light candles across the city and join an online gathering to commemorate the June 4, 1989, crackdown.

For context, the 1989 Tiananmen Square incident (sometimes called the '89 Democracy Movement) refers to student-led demonstrations held in Tiananmen Square in Beijing in 1989, amid the backdrop of post-Mao China. The protests reflected anxieties about the country's future, particularly among the youth, who took to the streets to protest against inflation, corruption, and suppression of free speech and the press. The demonstrations grew in number until the ruling government at the time, the Communist Party of China under Deng Xiaoping, deemed them to be a threat. Ultimately, on June 4, 1989, military troops with assault rifles and tanks ruthlessly fired at both demonstrators and bystanders, leading to what is infamously known as the Tiananmen Square massacre. The death toll is considered to have ranged anywhere between several hundred to several thousand.

On the 1st anniversary of the massacre in 1990, the very first memorial vigil was organised in Hong Kong, where around 15,000 people took part (Reuters estimate) and chanted "Long live democracy" and "Rescue those who live".

Tensions have been high over the years, like in 1996-1997 when people in the demonstration speculated that these might turn out to be the last vigil. However, the activity had never been explicitly banned until now, even though Mainland China always responded with skepticism.

In its prohibition letter, the Hong Kong Police cited a rule which prohibited public gatherings of more than eight people, which was earlier extended to June 4, in light of the three new COVID-19 cases registered in the city. The cops asserted that the gathering could potentially exacerbate the risk of coronavirus contamination in the public.

The SCMP report also quotes veteran pan-democrat Lee Cheuk-yan, who said that the police were using the virus as a pretext to do something which they had already intended to do.

“This year, on the 31st anniversary [of Tiananmen Square], without even having the national security law in place, [the vigil] was banned by the police in the name of the virus,” said Lee, who wore a black mask that read “freedom of speech”.

However, Lee's spirits were indomitable. The alliance chairman remained optimistic about the fact due to the police ban, the vigil would now be decentralised and spread online to various districts, effectively having the potential to reach more people. He encouraged people in Hong Kong to join in as individuals without violating the social distancing norms and observe in memorial of the 1989 protests.