HK activist calls for support in Taiwan

Some activists in Hong Kong fear Chinese authorities will crack down on the protests ahead of National Day on October 1, which this year marks the 70th anniversary of Communist rule in China.

Taipei: Hong Kong democracy activist Joshua Wong, a key figure in the territory's ongoing anti-Beijing protests, on Tuesday urged Taiwan to hold their own demonstrations.

"What we hope is to urge people in Taiwan to have mass mobilization before the first of October... we urge the people in Taiwan that it is time to safeguard Hong Kong, and to support people in Hong Kong to fight for free elections," said Joshua Wong, secretary-general of Hong Kong pro-democracy party Demosistō.

Some activists in Hong Kong fear Chinese authorities will crack down on the protests ahead of National Day on October 1, which this year marks the 70th anniversary of Communist rule in China.

"Now it is time for us to show solidarity," Wong added.

Wong, 22, arrived in Taiwan on Tuesday for a series of talks organised by local political groups.

He was invited by the 1,000-member Light Foundation, an advocacy group affiliated by Taiwan's ruling Democratic Progressive Party.

Wong is scheduled to speak at Taichung on Tuesday evening and at a Taipei symposium on Wednesday.

Beijing has claimed sovereignty over self-ruled Taiwan since the two separated during a civil war in the 1940s, and has threatened the use of force, if needed, to unify the two sides.

Chinese officials have stepped up military, diplomatic and economic pressure against Taiwan since 2016, when President Tsai Ing-wen took office.