The League of Social Democrats (LSSD), with a 19-year history, has confirmed that it will hold a press conference on Sunday (29th) to announce its dissolution, meaning that the last remaining pro-democracy political party will also disappear from Hong Kong. According to sources obtained by this station, the LSSD received three reminders this year from "messengers" demanding that the party dissolve before July 1st, or it may face serious consequences.
Following the Democratic Party's decision to dissolve the League of Social Democrats two months ago, the League also notified the media on Friday (27th) that it will hold a press conference on Sunday (29th) to announce its dissolution. They said, "Next year will be the 20th anniversary of the League of Social Democrats, but we have not survived to that day and will announce our dissolution."
Sources told our reporter that the League of Social Democrats (LSPD) has received three reminders since April, demanding that the party dissolve by July 1st, or face the serious consequence of being "forced to dissolve." However, the current LPD chairperson, Chan Po-ying, previously stated that she would not comment at this time. On Friday, she reiterated that she "will not respond to each point before the meeting."
The source also stated that after the dissolution of the League of Social Democrats, truly independent non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Hong Kong's civil society are virtually nonexistent. It is believed that the last organization to be targeted will be the Hong Kong Journalists Association.
The League of Social Democrats says, "Without resistance, there is no change."
The League of Social Democrats (LSSD) was founded in 2006 with the slogan "No change without struggle." In the 2008 Legislative Council election, the LSSD won three seats, with Wong Yuk-man, Leung Kwok-hung, and Chan Wai-yip elected as Legislative Council members, making it the third largest pro-democracy party. The LSSD spearheaded efforts to change parliamentary culture, famously throwing bananas at then-Chief Executive Donald Tsang in protest against government policies, which made the LSSD's parliamentary protest tactics famous and earned it the reputation of being a "radical democrat." Outside the legislature, it also initiated and participated in numerous demonstrations and civil disobedience actions.
In 2009, the League of Social Democrats and the Civic Party proposed a "five-district resignation, de facto referendum" to resign and return to the Legislative Council through by-elections, expressing public opinion in support of universal suffrage. The three members of the League of Social Democrats in the Legislative Council, Leung Kwok-hung, Wong Yuk-man, and Chan Wai-yip, as well as Leung Ka-kit and Tanya Chan from the Civic Party, all participated. In the end, the five of them successfully returned to the Legislative Council in the by-election in 2010.
League of Social Democrats members filibustered during the Budget session.
In the 2011 District Council elections, the League of Social Democrats launched the "Vote Debt Repayment" campaign, targeting the Democratic Party, which had previously entered the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government and facilitated the 2012 political reform proposal. Subsequently, due to ideological differences, Wong Yuk-man and Chan Wai-yip left the League of Social Democrats to form People Power; Leung Kwok-hung later succeeded them as chairman. The League of Social Democrats won only one seat in the 2012 and 2016 Legislative Council elections, and together with People Power, they repeatedly engaged in filibustering during Legislative Council meetings, particularly during bill deliberations and the Budget.
However, in 2016, Leung Kwok-hung's legislator status was revoked by the Department of Justice after he held a yellow umbrella and tore up a sign that read "NPC 831 Resolution" during his oath-taking ceremony. As a result, the League of Social Democrats lost all its seats in the Legislative Council. Nevertheless, the League of Social Democrats remained active in civil disobedience and petitioning.
69-year-old "Long Hair" Leung Kwok-hung remains in prison.
Several members of the League of Social Democrats have been imprisoned for "civil disobedience," while 69-year-old "Long Hair" Leung Kwok-hung remains incarcerated in connection with the 47-person case in the pro-democracy primary election. Meanwhile, LDP Vice Chairman Jimmy Sham, also a defendant in the 47-person case, was released from prison last month after serving his sentence.
Although other pro-democracy parties such as the Democratic Party and the Civic Party have dissolved, the League of Social Democrats (LSPD) has continued to hold petitions and street stalls during the National Security Law era, addressing issues such as the importation of foreign workers and the minimum wage. They even planned to petition outside the government headquarters on the day of this year's budget announcement, but ultimately had to cancel due to "strong pressure." Two years ago, the LSPD and some of its members' bank accounts were cancelled or suspended, and several members and volunteers were charged with "unlicensed fundraising in public places" and "unauthorized display of posters or flyers." If the LSPD dissolves, it would mean the disappearance of the last remaining pan-democratic political party in Hong Kong.
On Wednesday (25th), Huang Yu-min, the founding chairman of the League of Social Democrats, emphasized on his online radio that the League's contributions to social movements are undeniable, but he would not regret its dissolution because it was "nothing more could be done."
