For the second consecutive year, Hong Kongers have been prohibited from holding a candlelit vigil in Victoria Park this evening on the grounds of COVID-19 “health concerns.” Held annually, the vigil remembers victims of the June 4, 1989, Tiananmen Square Massacre, when peaceful democracy protesters were peppered with bullets and mowed down by armored personnel carriers in Beijing.

Prior to last year’s ban — also ostensibly due to COVID-19 safety concerns — Hong Kongers had held the vigil for three decades without interruption. Although some ignored last year’s ban and converged on Victoria Park, attendance was significantly lower than in previous years. Today’s commemorations are expected to be even more rigorously policed.

The People’s Republic of China was formed as a nation in 1949. Under the helm of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), it has published white papers with the sole aim of propagating and letting the world know of its achievements and policies. These reports set the template and act as guidelines for future policies. Many of the CCP’s famous rhetoric and polemics come from such reports and have stood the test of time. The four modernizations, seeking truth from facts and thought on socialism with Chinese characteristics are just some examples.

On May 21, China’s State Council issued a white paper, titled Tibet Since 1951: Liberation, Development and Prosperity, calling it an official account to show the world what is really happening in Tibet, and provide researchers and academics with facts and information about the region.

Until now, US President Joe Biden’s China policy has been characterized by relatively seamless continuity with the transformational approach of the national security team on Taiwan, the South China Sea, Hong Kong, trade and human rights.

Last month, it expanded its human rights enforcement beyond endorsing former US secretary of state Mike Pompeo’s declaration of China’s genocide in Xinjiang (the independent state of East Turkestan until China’s invasion in 1950).