BANGKOK — A student activist group issued a statement Thursday expressing solidarity with protesters in Hong Kong on the anniversary of China’s crackdown on demonstrators 31 years ago.
The group, which calls itself the Student Union of Thailand, said it supports Hong Kong protesters’ fight for democracy and autonomy against the influence of the Chinese government.
“Student Union of Thailand (SUT) is one with the Hong Kongers in condemning the recent security law, which is a severe attack against the city’s autonomy, rule of law, civil rights, and liberties,” the activists said in a statement published in Thai, English, and Chinese.
The group, which counts about 200 students as its members, added in its statement that “Chinese imperialism” is threatening the independence and livelihood in many nations, including Thailand.
Another student activist, Netiwit Chotiphatpaisal, baked cookies in the shape of the Tiananmen Gate in Beijing and the iconic “Tank Man” figure, then handed them on Wednesday in front of the Chinese Embassy in Bangkok as an act of symbolic protest.
Netiwit said the cookies had milk tea flavor, a reference to the “Milk Tea Alliance,” a coalition of pro-democracy activists in Thailand, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.
Police on Tuesday blocked Netiwit’s bid to hold a small demonstration in front of the Chinese Embassy to mark the Chinese deadly crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in June 1989.
A police spokesman cited concerns over the coronavirus for the ban and denied the allegations that the Thai police was pressued by the Chinese officials.