Last Active Hong Kong Pro-Democracy Party Disbands Because of Pressure

The Last Active Hong Kong Pro-Democracy party disbands amid 'immense' pressure

Hong Kong: The League of Social Democrats, the city’s last active pro-democracy party announced its closure at a press conference yesterday. Founded nearly 20 years ago, the group is disbanding, citing ‘tremendous’ pressure from China’s national security law, marking a historic turning point in Hong Kong’s political landscape.

Over these 19 years, we have endured hardships of internal disputes and the near-total imprisonment of our leadership, while witnessing the erosion of civil society, the fading of grassroots voices, the omnipresence of red lines, and the draconian suppression of dissent. (Press release)

This came on the eve of the fifth anniversary of the 2020 Beijing-imposed security law, with the left-wing group citing ‘tremendous political pressure.’

At the press conference LSD chair Chan Po-ying said that she could not elaborate further on the reasons behind the decision. Her husband and former chair of LSD, ‘Long Hair’ Leung Kwok-hung, remains in prison serving six years and nine months for subversion under the 2020 security legislation. He is among 14 democrats seeking appeals against their convictions and sentences.

Chan Po-ying, the chairwoman of League of Social Democrats, announcing the disbanding. Still from DRM News/Youtube

The LSD leaders sat in front of a banner that read, in translation: ‘I would rather be ashes than dust’ — a quote which was attributed to American novelist Jack London.

Founded in 2006, the LSD was known for advocating democratic reform and supporting the underprivileged. It has held seats in the Legislative Council and the District Councils before the electoral overhaul in 2021 that effectively barred members of the opposition from standing.

In their press release, the league said:

Today, with deep sorrow, we announce that, in face of immense political pressure and after careful deliberation – particularly with regard to the consequences for our members and comrades – we have made the difficult decision to disband.

Now the road has narrowed beyond passage. We leave with heavy hearts, and with an ache in our conscience, knowing we will not be the last to fall. The terrain ahead is even more treacherous. LSD now closes its chapter in Hong Kong’s history of dissent. Yet, as members of this society, our spirit remains. Even as we step aside, we stand with those still struggling in the shadows.

More from the LSD’s statement:

Since our founding, LSD has proudly proclaimed itself as a firm and outspoken opposition force under a political system lacking universal suffrage and heavily skewed in favour of a privileged few. We upheld the motto, “power to the people”, not only by fighting for one-person-one-vote as an essential pillar of democracy, but also by widespread civic action, from petitions and marches to referendums, to restore power to the people it rightly belongs to.

Guided by the principle of “Standing Unflinchingly with the Vulnerable,” we amplified silenced voices and exposed unjust policies and wasteful white elephant projects. We cried “No struggle, No change”, as we protested by way of non-violence – from the legislature, in the streets, and through the courts – all for the pursuit of advancing civil rights, universal suffrage, and social welfare.

For the past two decades, LSD has played an active role in every major social movement and policy initiative in Hong Kong. We were always there. We never stepped back.

The demise of the league makes it the third major pro-democracy party to meet its end in recent years. The Civic Party gave up in March 2024, and the Democratic Party, the city’s largest opposition group with a history of three decades, announced in February that it would begin steps to disband.