Hong Kong: Police raids on independent bookshops reported again in new blow to freedom of expression

16 July 2026

Responding to the reported arrest of five people in police raids on two independent bookstores in Hong Kong today, Amnesty International's Deputy Regional Director Sarah Brooks said:

"This year's escalating attacks on Hong Kong's independent bookstores hammer home the chilling reality of what the city has become: a place where you can be criminalized simply for what's on your bookshelf.

"Hong Kong's authorities must immediately stop using national security and sedition laws to criminalize the peaceful exercise of human rights,"

"Booksellers should never face arrest simply for doing their jobs: selling, publishing or distributing books. The use of 'sedition' offences to target bookstores once again demonstrates how Hong Kong's national security framework is being weaponized to silence dissenting voices and eradicate spaces for free thought and debate.

"The growing uncertainty over so-called 'red lines' for booksellers leaves publishers and writers guessing which titles could lead to criminal investigation, arrest or closure. Such ambiguity is intentional: fueling fear and self-censorship, with devastating consequences for freedom of expression.

"Hong Kong's authorities must immediately stop using national security and sedition laws to criminalize the peaceful exercise of human rights, and ensure that everyone in Hong Kong can access, publish and share ideas without fear of arrest."

Background

According to local media reports, Hong Kong police raided the independent bookstores Have a Nice Stay and Greenfield Bookstore on 15 July and arrested five people on suspicion of sedition-related offences.

The operation took place one day after Have a Nice Stay announced it would close, citing financial difficulties and "unclear red lines" surrounding which books may be legally sold.

Two bookstores have previously been raided by police in 2026, with their owners and staff arrested. Book Punch was raided in March with four people arrested, reportedly for selling books including a biography of jailed pro-democracy activist Jimmy Lai. Hunter Bookstore, another shop that reportedly stocked the Jimmy Lai biography, was raided in June with two people arrested.

All official statements surrounding the arrests refer to "seditious" publications or acts under Hong Kong's Article 23 law (also known as the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance).

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