Founded in 2006, the League of Social Democrats (LSD) has stood in support of democracy and the issues of the common people in Hong Kong’s legislature and on the streets.
The League of Social Democrats (LSD), one of the last remaining opposition parties in Hong Kong, is officially dissolving, its leader announced on Sunday, citing intense political pressure.
Beijing has been trying to suppress dissent in Hong Kong for years.
Founded in 2006, the LSD party has championed democracy and social justice not only in the legislature but also on the streets.
However, after Beijing imposed a national security law on Hong Kong in 2020, the LSD became one of the latest opposition parties to suspend its activities, largely due to its crackdown on dissent.
In a statement, the LSD said, “After facing intense political pressure, we have carefully considered the impact on our members and colleagues and made the difficult but necessary decision to dissolve the party.”
Party chairwoman Chan Po-ying said the decision was made unanimously.
Asked if there was direct pressure from Beijing, she said she could not give details.
In 2008, when the LSD was still popular, it won three seats in the Hong Kong legislature.
It was one of the first parties to call for direct elections.
LSD legislators have been known to hold colorful slogans and symbolic protests in the assembly — for example, throwing bananas or fish sandwiches at the city’s leadership.
Domino effect:
Amnesty International Hong Kong’s overseas representative Fernando Cheung said that the abolition of the LSD “clearly demonstrates the process of eliminating pan-democratic political parties and civil society organizations in Hong Kong.”
Since the national security law was enacted, many pro-democracy leaders have either been imprisoned or fled abroad.
The Civic Party was dissolved in 2023, and the Democratic Party began to close in February 2024.
One of the founders of LSD, “Long Hair” Leung Kwok-hung, is currently in prison after being found guilty of involvement in a major national security investigation in Hong Kong.
Another LSD activist, Jimmy Sham, was also imprisoned in the same case — he was recently released.
LSD’s recent activities have been limited to distributing leaflets from a small booth set up in a shopping area on Sundays. The police filmed these activities.
Finally, Chan said:
“Hong Kong is now facing a ‘domino effect’. However, we do not expect our group to be the last. We must continue to exercise our rights, on the one hand, for survival, and on the other, to be responsible citizens.”