Online monitoring of ‘localists’ in Hong Kong: A return to political policing?

Abstract

Hong Kong’s new ‘localist’ movement—advocating for total autonomy or even secession—has provoked a crackdown from both the local government and the central authorities in Beijing. This paper argues that the incoming administration of Carrie Lam is likely to continue to pursue online surveillance of localist political groups as one part of this crackdown, but that ultimately this may prove to be counterproductive if the goal is to reduce support for the movement.