This is heartbreaking and infuriating. Sentencing Lee Cheuk-yan, Chow Hang-tung and Albert Ho — longtime, peaceful organizers of what used to be one of the few public spaces to remember Tiananmen — to up to seven years for organising vigils is a brutal lesson in how the national security law has been used to erase memory and silence dissent. Calling a slogan like “end one‑party dictatorship” an act of “subversion” turns political speech into a crime and undermines basic freedoms: freedom of assembly, expression, and the right to remember victims of state violence. These were not violent actors but civic leaders, many of them elderly, who kept a difficult history alive. The HK$1.5m fine against the Hong Kong Alliance only adds insult to injury. This isn’t only about Hong Kong; it’s about the erosion of “one country, two systems,” the collapse of an independent legal space, and the chilling effect on anyone who dares to speak out. The authorities’ use of COVID restrictions and then the sweeping national security law to ban vigils shows how “stability” has been used to justify crushing civic life. Progressives should stand with these activists and with all Hongkongers fighting for democratic space. Push for fair appeals, demand accountability from governments that value human rights, support organizations documenting abuses, and amplify the stories of those criminalized for peaceful remembrance. We must not let memory be criminalized — history must be preserved and justice pursued.