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Perhaps you have seen friends on Facebook changing their profile pictures to that of a yellow ribbon on a black background, or came across online images of the Hong Kong democracy protests labelled with #OccupyCentral, #UmbrellaRevolution, #HKDemocracy and #HKProtest. In light of Beijing announcing a pre-screening of candidates for the election of the next Hong Kong Chief Executive, thousands of democracy activists took to the streets.

For me, it started on Sunday night when a friend in Hong Kong posted the following message on Facebook:

Peter Leaf_Facebook

Shortly after, images of the on-ground protests started popping up on social media, most predominantly on popular image-sharing app, Instagram. On Monday, reports emerged that users in China have been denied access to Instagram, while the app remained available to users in Hong Kong and the rest of the world.

Instagram Pictures Reveal The Good, The Bad And The Not-So-Ugly

Instagram was flooded with pictures from the protests, but while many showed the violent side of the event with tear gas and pepper spray attacks, netizens also captured the humanity and most importantly, the heart of what Hong Kongers are standing up for.

Image Credit: @iamsaii
Protestors brandish a cut-out of their Chief Executive. (Image Credit: @iamsaii on Instagram)
Image Credit: @simplyp3achy
Police propel tear gas for crowd control. (Image Credit: @simplyp3achy on Instagram)
Image Credit: @letscount123
Netizens highlight how #OccupyCentral is a true fight for democracy. (Image Credit: @letscount123 on Instagram)
Image Credit: @tunatallica
Things have quietened down after last weekend with a peaceful march. (Image Credit: @tunatallica on Instagram)
@Image Credit: CoconutsHK
Supply stations have been set up around protest hotspots. (Image Credit: CoconutsHK on Instagram)
Image Credit: @emmahum
Free water supply station! (Image Credit: @emmahum on Instagram)
Image Credit: hiulaamlaamm
A policeman helps to wash out the pepper spray with water/ the police force taking a break. (Image Credit: hiulaamlaamm on Instagram)

It’s Not Just Instagram that Big Brother’s Watching

This is not the first time Instagram has been taken down by Chinese authorities. In July this year, Instagram mysteriously disappeared from China’s Android app stores, possibly due to the peaceful protests taking place on the 17th anniversary of Hong Kong’s handover to China.

While it remains to be seen if the blackout of Instagram will be permanent, the app now joins the official ranks of China’s social media graveyard which includes Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Line and Snapchat.

China’s censorship on #OccupyCentral has also extended beyond Instagram, to its Twitter-like social media site Sina Weibo. While Weibo users flocked to the site to mourn the loss of their favourite image-sharing app, they had to resort to using alternative descriptors for Instagram – ‘Ins’ – to prevent their posts from being deleted or blocked.

Image Credit: Weibo
Image Credit: Weibo

Likewise, any Weibo posts on Hong Kong or the protests were systematically removed by the Chinese authorities. According to South China Morning Post, the number of Weibo posts being blocked increased five-fold between Friday and Sunday, setting a new record even for the Chinese authorities’ zealous censorship policies. At the beginning of the #OccupyCentral movement on Sunday, some 152 posts were deleted per 10,000 messages. Many of these censored posts were captured on website FreeWeibo, with the No. 1 hot topic reflected as ‘Hong Kong’, followed by ‘Occupy Central’.

So what are Hong Kong residents sticking to for social media right now? My friend, Peter Leaf, says, “So far, Facebook remains as the go-to social media platform. Twitter is not a traditionally popular tool here for locals, except maybe for expats and foreigners. I don’t think Weibo or WeChat is used too because every local knows that those platforms are being manipulated by China…only Facebook isn’t for now.”

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© 2021 GRVTY Media Pte. Ltd.
(UEN 201431998C.)

Vulcan Post aims to be the knowledge hub of Singapore and Malaysia.

© 2021 GRVTY Media Pte. Ltd.
(UEN 201431998C.)

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Vulcan Post aims to be the knowledge hub of Singapore and Malaysia.

© 2021 GRVTY Media Pte. Ltd.
(UEN 201431998C.)