To the hong kong info list:
Dear
Update from Galschiøt around The pillar of shame in hong kong and elsewhere in the world
Right now, an absolutely fantastic article has appeared in one of the world's largest magazines Business Insider. It has 75 million unique visitors a month in the US alone
Read it and share it with anyone who might be interested in China, Hong Kong and The Pillar of Shame. It can be downloaded here https://www.businessinsider.com/tearing-down-a-tiananmen-square-memorial-inspired-a-swell-of-replicas-2022-3?r=US&IR=T
It is written by Cezary Podkul who is an award-winning investigative reporter. He teaches at Hong Kong University's Journalism and Media Studies Center.
I'm very impressed with his recurring journalistic work,. It's one of the best articles and descriptions I've ever seen about my art project "the Pillar of Shame".
There are extensive activities around the globe about the situation in Hong Kong and The Pillar Of Shame is part of many of these activities.
Here is a small overview: update 19 marts 2022-
A lot of things are happening with The Pillar of Shame, not - so much in Hong Kong , but in the rest of the world.
The situation in Hong Kong and The Pillar Of Shame :: The sculpture is still in Hong Kong. We have now up to 10 different crane and transport companies that dare not touch it. Not because they do not like me or the sculpture, but because they are afraid of the new security legislation.
There are many activities in the world where copies of the The Pillar of Shame are included.
The sculpture has gradually become one of the ultimate icons of China's oppression.
Here is a small overview:. New information is added almost every day about new initiatives from many places in the world - this is a selection:
- Budapest: I have just set up one of the smaller copper models (about 4 m with plinth) in Budapest together with the mayor.
- Taiwan: in Taiwan they are working on 3D printing an 8 meter high Pillar of Shame, and I will go there on the 4th of June to hold meetings and speeches.
- In Oslo, an original copper model will be erected in full size (8m) in a few months. A collaboration between Amnesty and the local Hong Kong committee.
- In Denmark, 3 of the smaller copper sculptures (4 m) have been erected, which are currently used as memorial sculptures around Ukraine in Copenhagen, Odense and Ålborg.
- We are working on setting up a number of permanent aesthetic and powerful memorials ( the model of The pillar of Shame) on friendly universities in the world. They will serve as stationary monuments, and as a double memorial to both the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989 and the crushing of democracy and freedom of speech in Hong Kong by China breaking the agreement they promised, when they took over Hong Kong in the form of "two systems - a country". We have a meeting with the first university in next month.
- At Galschiøt's workshop copper sculptures will be cast 24/7 and before the 4th of June, a number of monuments will be ready. They will be mounted on car trailers, so they will be a kind of transportable monuments (3.8 meters high) that can participate in ceremonies on July 4 in England, Germany and elsewhere in Europe.
- In the US, work is underway to fund a large pillar of shame in bronze to stand in front of the Chinese Embassy in Washington DC.
- In Canada, they work with 3d printing of sculptures.
- In the Hong Kong / Japan / Taiwan, one of the democracy groups has started a major production of 3D prints of Pillar of Shame in smaller editions for sale. Based on the Lady Liberty group. The profit goes to the movements. They can be ordered at:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfoMv_1Il3UN7JKQVTD5vSWgUQ3DNnzbTQPq--kF57Uql5HZA/viewform
- England. Local Hong Kong groups use copies of The Pillar of Shame for street debates around England
- Prague: June 11 till mid-September the original Pillar of Shame from Hong Kong is exhibited and starts on a world tour afterwards - (if we get it out). The exhibition is a large-scale art project in the middle of Prague where the Mayor of Prague and the Minister of Culture have invited artists around China art activities to focus on art used in defense of human rights.
- The Netherlands: In the Netherlands, they are preparing a major campaign to get schools across the Netherlands to print out 3D models of The Pillar of Shame and set them up as well as to hang prints everywhere. They will also try to spread this happening to other places in Europe and possibly elsewhere. The Netherlands' very strong branch of Amnesty International is behind the project.
- 3d Print: I have released the copyright to the sculpture "The Pillar of Shame". So everyone can freely use photo and 3D printing of the sculpture without permission.You can download 3D files at Pillar of Shame (Hong Kong) by Pillar of Shame (Hong Kong) by LadyLibertyHK - Thingiverse for free. And you can buy The pillar of Shame in 20 cm height quite cheaply at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfoMv_1Il3UN7JKQVTD5vSWgUQ3DNnzbTQPq--kF57Uql5HZA/viewform thereby supporting Chinese students from all over the world.
Let's keep in touch.
This email has been translated by Google and may contain some translation errors.
Yours sincerely,
Jens Galschiøt Mobil 45 40447058
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Dear [FORNAVN]
Press release and situation report March 2 at 19:00 from Budapest from Jens Galschiøt, who has just set up a copy of The Pillar of Shame in the city.
The visit to Budapest in Hungary is marked by Russia's war against Ukraine.
Funen resident on his way to Moldova
A few hours ago I was called by my son, Kasper Galschiøt Markus, who to my great surprise told me that he was 35 km from Budapest. I thought he was in Denmark. The story is that he and 5 gifted Fynbos are on their way to Moldova in 2 Danish cars to help pick up refugees from Ukraine from the border with Moldova and drive them to the slightly larger cities in Moldova, so they can get higher up in Europe.
They did not have time to visit me and join the Pillar of Shame lineup. They were going to Moldova as soon as possible. This says something about thousands of private initiatives taking place both in Denmark and throughout Europe, and we are also experiencing this here in Hungary.
The hotel we are staying at in Budapest is filled with hundreds of Africans from Nigeria who have fled Ukraine
They are all refugees from Ukraine now, but have previously studied at universities there. It is a discreet mix of children, women and men. But they are all in good spirits after being released from Ukraine. When we meet them in the elevator, they are grateful that Europe has taken care of them, and they are very grateful.
You get damn proud on behalf of Europe. It's all organized by Budapest Municipality, which is quite progressive, and these are exactly the ones we've been with all day.
Performance of The Pillar of Shame in Budapest at 12 noon on March 2
The Pillar of Shame was erected on the corner of "Free Hong Kong Road" and "Uyghur Martyrs Ut", the place where China has pledged support for the construction of Budapest's new university.
Budapest Kulturforvaltning had made a beautiful plinth, which formed the basis for the 3 meter high sculpture, so it looks very stately with a height of 5 meters. This is a kind of dress rehearsal for a large number of sculptures that are to be erected permanently at universities in the world.
I was the first speaker to tell the story of The Pillar of Shame and the Democratic Movement in Hong Kong. I ended my speech by linking the totalitarian China's attack on its own democracy movement with the totalitarian leader Putin's attack on Ukraine.
To emphasize my point, I handed over 2 copper reliefs of pig dogs, with the text "Do not Feed Your Inner Beast", which is about the fact that power can corrupt everyone, including the two mayors who were handed the sculptures.
After me, Budapest's Mayor of Culture Mayor Krisztina Baranyi spoke, focusing on the problems of Hungary's Victor Orban, with the support of a totalitarian China, building Hungary's largest university.
She also said that in Budapest a lot of measures have been taken to prevent the construction of the university, among other things. a collection of signatures to have the decision overturned by a nationwide referendum, and a rather amusing, initiative in which the municipality of Budapest has renamed all the roads to the place where the university is to be built. The roads are now called "Free Hong Kong Road" and "Uyghur Martyrs Road" and "Dalai Lama Road".
The next speaker was the Mayor of Budapest, Gergely Karácsony, who is a very famous man in Hungary. He ran as a very powerful presidential candidate against Hungary's current president Vitor Orban, but chose to resign so the opposition could stand in unison against Orban, who is due to be re-elected in early April.
In his speech, the Lord Mayor focused on President Vitor Orban's cooperation with China and his cooperation with Putin, which is now smashing Ukraine. He said that although they have gathered over 200,000 votes together to demand a referendum, Vitor Orban pulls it out against all rules to avoid a defeat before the upcoming election (April 15) in this very precarious case on cooperation with China. The mayor also distanced himself from the situation where Orban bans all transport across Hungary's territories with weapons to the defense of Hungary's neighbor Ukraine.
The sculpture stood absolutely stunning in the sunshine and will later be moved into the center of Budapest, where it will be used in connection with some national anniversaries. It should stand there for about 1 month
press contact info:
Galschiøt´'s son can be contacted by phone on the way to Moldava on his mobile +45 61713083.
Exhibition of the Pillar of Shame sculpture will be inaugurated at noon everyone is welcome- for further information contact Dorottya Czuk tel: 00 36 30 351- 1253, mail: czukdorottya@gmail.com
Jens Galschiøt who is already in Hungary can be contacted on mobile +45 40447058 or email: Jens@galschiot.com further info about Galschiøt and the Pillar of Shame can be downloaded at Galschiot.com
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Pillar of shame is set up today on "Free Hong Kong Road" and "Uyghur Martyrs Road" in Budapest
On March 2, the mayor of Budapest will erect a 3-meter-high copper model of the Pillar of Shame at the site where Hungarian President Victor Orban will build a giant university backed by China.
The decision on the university has sparked widespread protests among Hungarians, who have gathered over 200,000 signatures to get a referendum on construction. The city of Budapest has renamed the roads down to the site where the university will be built, so that the university will be located between three roads called "Free Hong Kong Road" and "Uyghur Martyrs and Dalai Lama Square"
The opposition should make Hungarian President Viktor Orban think twice - is it wise to throw oneself into the arms of China's totalitarian leader Xi Jinping when he is up for election already in April.
He already has an explanation problem with his friendship with Russia's Putin, another totalitarian leader who has thrown himself over Ukraine and is in the process of murdering to get his empire dream come true.
Viktor Orban has supported Putin by banning the supply of arms supplies through Hungary to the Ukrainians. They stand with the jerk against the wall while one of the world's largest military machines tries to wipe out all resistance
A new friendship with a Chinese dictator that he will influence generations of university students will not adorn in the upcoming election campaign. Hungary's decision-makers might have to tame over the call engraved in The Piller of Shame what it says "the old can not kill the young for all eternity"
An erection of the Pills of Shame will in Hungary almost function as a four double monument
A Pillar of Shame over a Communist Party in China that chose to kill its own students because they stifled cautious reforms and the right to freedom of expression in the 1989 peaceful occupation of Tiananmen Square
A Pill of Shame over a new Chinese totalitarian leader who has shattered the dream of democracy in Hong Kong and broken all his promises to allow them to retain their Western freedoms if they were allowed to annex Hong Kong
A Pillar of Shame over that focuses on Europe being in the middle of a war created by a totalitarian leader Putin who has grown up in the heart of Europe.
A Pill of Shame over that a leader in Hungary with totalitarian tendencies making an alliance with a totalitarian China about it building a university it will characterize Hungarian youth for decades
I attach a statement from Jens Galschiøt and the press release issued by Budapest about the visit
Exhibition of the Pillar of Shame sculpture will be inaugurated at noon everyone is welcome- for further information contact Dorottya Czuk tel: 00 36 30 351- 1253, mail: czukdorottya@gmail.com
Jens Galschiøt who is already in Hungary can be contacted on mobile +45 40447058 or email: Jens@galschiot.com further info about Galschiøt and the Pillar of Shame can be downloaded at Galschiot.com
There may be some translation errors as the text is google translated
Best Jens Galschiot
the press release issued by Budapest about the visit
Model of world-famous removed monument Pillar of Shame arrives in Budapest
The sculpture remembers the victims of Tiananmen Square
At the request of Krisztina Baranyi, a version of the world-famous bronze statue of the Danish artist Jens Galschiøt will be exhibited in Ferencváros, at the Fudan University site in Budapest. The artist's statue of the same title was removed by the Hong Kong authorities on December 23, 2021, from the square in front of the city's university. The model will be on view on Free Hong Kong road from March 2nd. Jens Galschiøt , a Danish artist will also arrive in Budapest on this occasion.
Krisztina Baranyi has invited the Pillar of Shame to Budapest to draw attention to the more than 200.000 signatures collected more than two months ago in favor of a referendum on the proposed Budapest campus of the Shanghai-based Fudan University, financed by a 1.3-billion-euro loan from China Development Bank. According to the Hungarian constitution, 200,000 signatures are needed for a question to initiate a referendum, yet the Hungarian Parliament hasn't given a green light to this.
Critics say the cost of the campus would be higher than what the government spends each year on running all of the country's state-run universities. The contract is classified, just like the other big Chinese project in Hungary, the construction of a new Belgrade-Budapest railway.
The Pillar of Shame is part of a multi-part sculpture series and all of them commemorates a massacre. According to the artist, the Budapest version of the Hong Kong statue is linked to the others by having the same text on the pedestal: The old cannot kill the young forever.
According to the artist Jens Galschiøt, this text not only reminds us of what happened to the Hong Kong-based Pillar of Shame by Chinese command, but Russia's war in Ukraine also gives a sad topicality to the work exhibited in Budapest, as „Putin is the past himself ".
Jens Galschiøt, the sculptor of The Pillar of Shame, issued the following statement in connection with his exhibition in Ferencváros:
"I hope that this artistic manifestation will show China that the Hungarian people will not tolerate an education policy that is under the influence of one of the largest totalitarian countries in the world. A country that in no way shares the values of Europe and Hungary. A country that has both killed their student
movement in 1989 and a country that has just crushed the Hong Kong student movement and put thousands of students in jail for defending their right to democracy and freedom of speech.
One would think that precisely Hungary with their historical references, where after 2 World Wars and being a subject to totalitarian Soviet supremacy had had enough of dictators.
It seems almost absurd that the government is now voluntarily giving a new totalitarian regime influence in the country. Instead of this Hungarian students at the Hungarian Universities should learn about democracy and debate how the world is developing.
Hungary should know better - There ain't no such thing as a free lunch."
The eight-meter-high work demolished in Hong Kong was the last statue to commemorate the June 4, 1989 massacre in Tiananmen Square in the Chinese city-state.
The Pillar of Shame has stood at the University of Hong Kong for 24 years. On June 4, the student government each year, with its cleansing, remembered that in 1989, on this day, units of the Chinese People's Liberation Army in the Tiananmen Square in Beijing had stifled a demonstration by a crowd demanding democratic reforms. In addition to commemoration, it was also a symbol of Hong Kong liberties.
The removal of The Pillar of Shame was officially ordered by the University of Hong Kong in October 2021, according to their statement "based on an external legal advise". It was first covered with sheets reaching the ceiling, and then on Christmas night the work was broken up and placed in a container.
This version of the statue, which has aroused huge international interest, has not been exhibited anywhere since last December.
The statue will be presented on March 2, 2022, at noon by district IX. Mayor Krisztina Baranyi, sculptor Jens Galschiøt and Chief Mayor of Budapest Gergely Karácsony.
Venue of the press conference: district IX., at the cross of Free Hong Kong Road and Uyghur Martyrs Road ( Front area of the former Great Market warehouse).
Budapest statement from Jens Galschiøt
I have been pleased to receive the invitation to exhibit in my copper model of the Pillar of Shame in Budapest.
The sculpture I exhibit in Budapest is a model that is a model for my large sculpture in Hong Kong and is not a copy, but an independent work of art, it was created already in 1996 and is with a plinth over 4.5 meters high.
The original sculpture was brutally removed by the Hong Kong authorities. It has stood at Hong Kong University for over 24 years as the memorial to the Tiananmen Square Massacre, June 4, 1989, where China in the center of Beijing, killing and arresting thousands of pro-democracy protesters.
In 2021 in Hong Kong, the 8.5 meter high sculpture was removed on Christmas night 22-23 December, thus also becoming a symbol of the crushing of Hong Kong students and the democracy movement in Hong Kong. This removal of the sculpture triggered a global outcry and activated artists and activists around the world and the sculpture became the most talked about work of art on the globe in 2021.
I am still working on getting the remains of the sculpture out of Hong Kong and sent to Denmark.
China's destruction of the symbol of freedom of speech and democracy in Hong Kong is a failed declaration for Hong Kong University, which should stand for intellectual freedom, a place where all opinions and views could be broken freely and where new ideas could emerge. But also a place where students preserved and researched the history of mankind and China. That commitment has been abandoned by Hong Kong University and surrendered to the constricting ties of censorship due to China's pressure. It is a kind of spiritual intellectual self-castration.
It is this self-suppression that one risks Budapest if one built a university for Chinese money. China we with unfailing certainty to try to push their own history perception down over the new university in Budapest and pressure the teachers to convey China's version of reality with censorship of all opinions that deviate from China's understanding of the world. They have done this everywhere in the world where they have gained influence and they will do the same in Hungary
It is therefore with pride that I erect this particular sculpture in Budapest and in the square in front of the place where one wants to build a university paid for by China.
I hope that this artistic manifestation will show China that the Hungarian people will not tolerate an education policy that is under the influence of one of the largest totalitarian countries in the world. A country that in no way shares the values of Europe and Hungary. A country that has both killed their own student movement in 1989 and a country that has just crushed the Hong Kong student movement and put thousands of students in jail for defending their right to democracy and freedom of speech.
It is absurd that this particular country is now one of the main sponsors of one of Hungary's educational institutions, where thousands of Hungarian students have to learn about democracy and debate how the world is developing.
One would think that precisely Hungary with their historical references, where after 2 World Wars they were subject to a totalitarian Soviet supremacy had had enough of dictators.
I look forward to exhibiting in Budapest and hope my art can help create a good and constructive debate about China, independence, education and freedom of speech
Best Regards Jens Galschiøt
16 Feb. 2022
This text is google translated, which may therefore be a translation error
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Background and history
Denmark honors the creator of The Pillar of Shame
The award is founded by the daily newspaper Fyens Stiftstidende and is one of the major honorary awards in Denmark. The recognition of Mr. Galschiøt was given to honor the artist's work to defend human rights in the world and a special honor to his activities in Hong Kong against the Chinese attacks on democracy. On the occasion of the award ceremony an art glass plate with The Pillar of Shame engraved was given to the artist.
It was a rather controversial decision by the judging panel set up by the newspaper. The city of Odense, the hometown, in which the artists' activities are based, is also the birthplace of Denmark's most famous author Hans Christian Andersen, and therefore the city has an extensive collaboration with China regarding Hans Christian Andersen. The city has just invested $50 million in building a brand new large museum that will attract thousands of Chinese tourists.
With the choice of Jens Galschiøt for Citizen of Funen of the Year 2021, the judges chose to defy China's potential reprisals.
The artist himself was very surprised by the appointment and stated:
“I am very surprised and happy to be Citizen of Funen of the Year 2021. I had feared that the judges would not dare to show me this honor. This is almost equivalent to giving China a middle finger that says that no matter how much China tries to censor their history and change reality, we in Denmark stand on our right to freedom of expression, also when it comes to Chinese issues, and our right to give honor to our own citizens, no matter what China might think of it. I am happy and proud to live in a country that does not give in to China's pressure, and supports the criticism of China's abuses of democracy and human rights in both Hong Kong and China. There are many countries that could learn something from that."
Mr. Galschiøt's sculpture, The Pillar of Shame, is still in Hong Kong. It was brutally dismantled and packed in a container on December 22nd during an extensive operation at Hong Kong University. In the middle of the night, a demolition company came together with over 50 guards and covered the entire area where the more than 8 meter high sculpture was located with barricades and tarpaulins and in the shadow of the darkness they broke the sculpture down with pneumatic drills and cranes. The demolition took place while a powerful cyclone ravaged all over Hong Kong, but even though the weather gods tried to prevent the demolition, the many construction workers managed to break the sculpture down and drive it away from University of Hong Kong.
The Pillar of Shame sculpture has been at the university for 24 years and was the only memorial on Chinese soil of the Tiananmen Square massacre in Beijing in 1989, in which China killed students who had demanded more democracy in China by occupying Tiananmen Square.
With the breakdown and removal from the University of Hong Kong, The Pillar of Shame has now also become the symbol of the crushing of Hong Kong students' struggle for freedom of speech and democracy in Hong Kong and of China definitely breaking their promise and guarantees to the international community that that Hong Kong could preserve their political system and freedom. China promised Hong Kong "one country, two systems", but it has now become "one country, one system" with all that entails around lack of freedom of expression, and an authoritarian regime without legal guarantees, freedom of expression and participation for the individual citizen.
At the moment, Jens Galschiøt's legal representative in Hong Kong is working to arrange transport the remains of the sculptures out of Hong Kong and to Denmark. But there are many obstacles to transportation, and several crane and transportation companies have resigned to perform the task as they fear retaliation from the Chinese state. The new security law in Hong Kong prohibits speaking out and engaging in activities that could be perceived as a criticism of China, and companies fear being accused of violating this law. Mr. Galschiøt hopes to succeed in getting the large sculpture out during February.
In connection with the removal of the sculpture from Hong Kong, Mr. Galschiøt says:
“It is with great sadness that I now experience that there is no longer room for my sculpture, The Pillar of Shame, in Hong Kong. That's where it's supposed to be. It is shameful how Hong Kong has become a place where the right to freedom of expression and democracy is now so suppressed that Hong Kong can now be compared to other authoritarian countries, which with the help of aggressive police are subjecting their people to massive repression and use a consequent judicial system as weapon against their own people. An aggression that removes Hong Kong from being a vibrant, dynamic metropolis with diversity and enterprise, and where information about the world could be shared freely, and to being a place that must now be considered under an authoritarian regime without legal certainty and freedom of expression for the citizens. "
Perhaps it is precisely this situation in Hong Kong that has led the judging committee in Denmark to choose to honor Jens Galschiøt and make him Citizen of Funen of the Year 2021 to emphasize and send a signal to China that they stand behind his criticism of the regime in both China and Hong Kong.
January 1, 2022:
about statements the former University of Hong Kong's council chairman Arthur Li. and a comment from jens Galschiøt
About my sculpture "The pillar of shame"
(This letter is Google translated and may therefore contain translation errors)
I just received the following info from the press (Mingpao Hong Kong) about statements the former University of Hong Kong's council chairman Arthur Li
the words from the former Chairman of HKU Council Mr Arthur Li mentioning you and the pillar of shame which used to be at HKU. He decribed that the pillar of shame is a "scam" / "lie" that it was actually made by you for the Oklahoma City Bombing but not the Tiannanmen massacre. He also said that neither the US government nor other countries accepted the pillar of shame so you sent it to Hong Kong.
I strongly dissociate myself from what the former University of Hong Kong's council chairman Arthur Li is saying. It is strange and completely unacceptable to be called a liar by a man who advocates taking down works of art that try to remember and mark Chinese history.
It is Arthur Li who is trying to obliterate history and wants to oppress everyone who is in favor of citizens' free rights to debate, and to remember what is happening in Chinese society both now and in the past. It is a disgrace that the monument "The pillar and shame" has been removed with violence from Honkkong University and it is a disgrace that the university people can go in to wipe out history.
It's not me who's lying and manipulating the story, but perhaps Arthur Li is probably trying to create a breeding ground for a lie that the June 4, 1989 Tiananmen Square Massacre never took place.
I made created The Pillar of Shame in 1993 to 1995. It was my intention to create a monument that remembered various landmark crimes against humanity around the world. The same sculpture was to be erected in several different places in the world to mark these crimes.
Therefore, all the different peoples are represented the sculpture, Asians, Africans, European, indigenous peoples from the American continent ect, so that the same sculpture could mark different crime. Only the large shelf was very special for each country.
The sculpture was called "The Nobel Prize of Shame" by the press. And China received the first "award" for the Tiananmen Square Massacre in 1989.
It is a very important point and an artistic decision that the sculpture should be the same everywhere it
should mark a crime, to emphasize that the essence of these crimes in the world is the same no matter where they took place
I decided that the first "pillar of shame" should be erected in Hong Kong in 1997, to mark the June 4 Tiananmen Square Massacre in 1989.
I presented it in Rome, Italy in 1995, during a major international meeting. I got a lot of suggestions on where to put up a copy of The Pillar of Shame. But I chose the first one to be erected in Hong Kong in 1997 and I made a special copy and a special plinth for Hong Kong.
Some years after the year 2000, I set up a "Pillar of Shame" in Mexico to mark the killing of the indigenous people and in 2001, I set up another one in Brazil to mark the massacre of the landless peasants and the struggle for land in Brazil. It is still my intention that I will line up more in the world.
The pillar of shame in Hong Kong, is the most important of these sculptures, as it was the first to be erected and it has formed a school for the 2 other "Pillar of Shame" "in the world.
"The old cannot kill the young forever" chiseled into the base of "The pillar of Shame" is a quote taken from the students at Tiananmen Square in 1989 and this quote is on the sculptures erected in Mexico and Brazil
Yours sincerely
Jens Galschiøt
Mobile +45 40447058
*****
23 december 2021
Attached is a press release from the Hong Kong Committee in Norway: A monument to freedom and democracy in Hong Kong disappears.
We have made a Google translate of the statement and put the Norwegian origina under
Best jens mobil +45 4044 7058
Google translate of the statement
Attached is a press release from the Hong Kong Committee in Norway: A monument to freedom and democracy in Hong Kong disappears.
Best regards,
Jessica KaYi Chiu
Hong Kong Committee in Norway, chair
Tel: +47 9687 7853
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/standwithhk.norway/
IG: @ standwithhk.norway
Twitter: @hkc_no
Web: https://hongkongkomiteen.org/
Press release from the Hong Kong Committee in Norway:
A monument to freedom and democracy in Hong Kong disappears
Today, Danish Jens Galschiøt's sculpture Pillar of Shame (Skamstøtten) is removed from
campus at Hong Kong University. The sculpture is a memorial to those who died in
the massacre that crushed the protests in Tiananmen Square in Beijing on June 4, 1989.
Galschiøt, who himself owns the sculpture, has repeatedly approached
Hong Kong authorities to come to an arrangement so that the sculpture can be brought to
Denmark. He has then explained that special competence is required so that the sculpture does not become
broken. Galschiøt has not been informed in advance of the current operation. Testimonials
indicates that there is a great danger that the sculpture is about to be destroyed.
This action joins the ranks of the Hong Kong authorities' attempts to erase
out the memories in Hong Kong of the massacre. Previously, the authorities closed June 4-
museum in Hong Kong, denied the people their statutory right to mark the crime,
forcibly dissolved the organization working for freedom and democracy in mainland China,
arrested the organization's leaders for alleged violations of the Security Act, and restricted
access to the June 4 Museum website.
The Hong Kong Committee in Norway condemns the authorities' attempts to write about and
falsify the story of the historically essential, peaceful uprising in support of
democracy and freedom in China. If the unconfirmed reports of destruction turn out to
bring correctness, there are methods from Mao's cultural revolution that have now come to
Hong Kong. This action will then show how Hong Kong's former freedoms are now in
free fall.
With its attacks on the population's collective memory of the atrocities of 1989 gives
Carrie Lams steer us associations in the direction of a modern barbarism, with attacks on
objective storytelling inspired by George Orwell's Nineteen - four.
Brief background information
The Pillar of Shame was first unveiled during the memorial service at Victoria Park in Hong Kong on 4 June
1997. It was then moved between several of the universities in Hong Kong. From September
In 1998, the statue was permanently exhibited at Hong Kong University.
Ahead of the 2008 Summer Olympics, Galschiøt launched the project The Color Orange, there
orange color was used to express support for human rights. As part of this
the project was Pillar of Shame painted orange in 2008. Since then, the students at Hong
King University painted the statue orange on June 4 each year. They did this again this year, something like
may have been the last commemoration of the Hong Kong massacre in a long time
******
22 december 2021
I'm totally shocked that Hong Kong University is currently destroying the pillar of shame
It is completely unreasonable and a self-immolation against private property in Hong Kong- I have now for over 3 months written to Hong Kong University that I would like to move the sculpture.
But it has been completely impossible to get in touch with them - all my attempts to contact them have been rejected and my lawyer in Hong Kong has also tried to contact them, but failed.
It is my private property and the sculpture belongs to me personally- I have written to them several times and the Hong Kong Alliance has sent out a statement that it is my private property and that they only have it on loan for exhibition at Hong Kong University
So I have to demand that Hong Kong one take care of the sculpture. And I will claim compensation for any damage to the sculpture.
I myself have offered to go to Hong Kong with a team, and remove the sculpture nor have I been given the opportunity, Hong Kong universities will not talk to me.
Countries around the world have offered to receive The Pillar of Shame and the Danish Foreign Minister has offered his help - but there has been no response from Hong Kong universities or other responsible authorities - it is a disgrace and an abuse and shows that Hong Kong has become a brutal place without laws and regulations such as protecting the population, the arts and private property
And it's even more grotesque that they use the Western holiday, Christmas, to carry out the destruction of the artwork.
Letter from the Alliance on Galschiøt ownership of the sculpture
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（2021年10月13日新聞稿）
支聯會（香港市民支援愛國民主運動聯合會）及兩名清盤人蔡耀昌、鄧燕娥就孖士打律師行於2021年10月7日代表香港大學發出的信件（Ref: AMJS/JSYW/AFK/21690549），於10月13日回覆律師行關於豎立在黃克競樓平台的「國殤之柱」雕塑安排。（詳見附件）
「國殤之柱」屬於原創作者丹麥雕塑家高志活先生（Mr. Jens Galschiot），於1997年「六四」8周年前，借出「國殤之柱」予支聯會供在香港永久展覽。近日，高志活先生發出公開聲明表示他仍是「國殤之柱」擁有人，而據悉他亦已委託律師跟進「國殤之柱」有關事宜；為此，支聯會認為，未來較合適的做法是由香港大學校方直接與高志活先生代表律師接洽處理。
1998年11月3日，香港大學學生會全民投票通過永久擺放「國殤之柱」，1999年6月4日晚，由港大學生會從維多利亞公園運往香港大學黃克競樓平台永久擺放至今，見證香港回歸中國後的民主和人權發展。高志活先生更於2013年9月26日至10月2日，來港修葺「國殤之柱」和重新髹上橙色。
支聯會清盤人蔡耀昌認為，香港大學作為一個具言論及學術自由的空間，有社會責任及使命保留「國殤之柱」，期望校方依據過往20多年的行事標準，繼續容許「國殤之柱」於港大校園豎立。
如有查詢，請Signal、 WhatsApp 27826111或致電 90378964與蔡耀昌聯絡。
聯會清盤人蔡耀昌謹啟
2021年10月13日
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22. december 2021
Breaking news: The pillar of Shame is being destroyed in these minutes.
The pillar of shame in Hong Kong is being destroyed in these minutes. An hour ago, construction work began to cover the sculpture. And we have received information from the press that it is being dismantled in these minutes
The whole area of Hong Kong University where the sculpture has stood for 24 years has been covered and there is a lot of noise inside behind the curtain.
So it suggests that machines and humans are in the process of breaking down the sculpture.
We encourage everyone to go out to Hong Kong University and document everything that happens with the sculpture,
We have done everything we can to tell the University of Hong Kong that we would very much like to pick up the sculpture and bring it to Denmark.
Check this video from the university in Hong Kong right now:
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December 2021
Herewith a briefing about the situation with the Pillar of Shame
3D Print: A fantastic beautiful 3D scan of the Pillar of Shame in Hong Kong has been posted on the internet for free use see link.
At the moment, many 3D printers are printing copies of the sculpture. I regularly receive photos and emails from people who are working. These small copies are used as small memorials to the Tiananmen Square massacre 4 june 1989 and placed around as both exhibition objects but also as streetart figures.
3D Print it out and join the action and spread it on social media and other platforms.
Take photo of the sculpture located in all possible and impossible places, in front of the local Chinese Embassy, or in the local parliament, on top of Mount Everest, on Mount Hong Kong, in Nepal, and New York.
You can put up copies of the sculpture at your school, university or workplace or around the city - only the imagination sets limits.
But be carefull - this is certainly not harmless art.
So the paradox is that in an attempt to remove the monument in Hong Kong, a process has been initiated in which thousands of copies begin to spread all over the globe, keeping the memory of the Tiananmen Square massacre 4 June 1989 alive.
Open letter
I have now been waiting almost 1 month for response from Hong Kong University regarding moving the sculpture, and I have received nothing.
I have therefore today sent the following open letter to the University of Hong Kong and the Hong Kong authorities to clarify the situation regarding The Pillar of Shame
In the letter I write that I would like to pick up the monument of the tiananmen square massacre June 4, 1989. But to be able to do that, I must have security for me and my staff and those I work with in Hong Kong not being arrested.
At the same time, the various authorities in Hong Kong need to be willing to work together to get the sculpture out of Hong Kong. Otherwise it will not be possible. See the letter under this email or download it at the link
They received the letter on 12 Nov and I am still waiting for a reply.
Yours sincerely
Jens Galschiøt
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Denmark 12. Nov. 2021
Open letter to The University of Hong Kong and Hong Kong authorities
from Jens Galschiøt, the artist behind the Monument of the Tiananmen Square Massacre 1989
My legal representative in Hong Kong has since October 12, 2021, attempted to contact The University of Hong Kong around the removal of the Monument of the Tiananmen Square Massacre 1989. We have also sent a letter to the university's legal representative Mayer Brown and have tried to get clarification and collaboration around the removal.
The Pillar of Shame, as the monument is also called, has for 24 years been exhibited at The University of Hong Kong.
We have not at the time of writing received a reply to our inquiries. I am therefore sending this open letter through the press to reach an agreement on how we can resolve the situation around the monument, which I am the rightful owner of.
I can understand from statements in the press from The University of Hong Kong, that: “a Hong Kong University spokesperson did not directly respond but told Hong Kong Free Press that they are still seeking legal advice and working with related parties to handle the matter in a legal and reasonable manner.”
I am very happy to hear this, as I am also interested in resolving the situation and getting started on moving the sculpture.
However, there are issues we must clarify and agree on first:
1. Full cooperation: The University of Hong Kong must enter into a full cooperation with myself to have the sculpture removed, otherwise it will not be possible. I need the university to assist with technical assistance, roadblocks, permits and other advisory support.
2. My presence in Hong Kong is necessary: The sculpture is very difficult to move, and it will require considerable expertise to move it from the area at the university without causing significant and irreparable damage to the costly sculpture. The move will therefore require me to personally come to Hong Kong with my team of staff who, in collaboration with local Hong Kong companies and helpers in Hong Kong, can undertake the work. The sculpture can then be transported out of Hong Kong to Denmark.
3.Immunity from prosecution: I can understand from the press that the introduction of the new security legislation in Hong Kong means that there is a legal basis for arresting foreign nationals who engage in activities that criticize China. A removal of the Monument of The Tiananmen Square Massacre in 1989 will lead to activities and media coverage that could be perceived as criticism of China. Therefore, I will have to get a guarantee that my employees and I will not be prosecuted in relation to the disassemblement and moving of the monument.
I propose that such an agreement is made between the responsible authorities in Hong Kong and in Denmark. I can state that I have twice been refused entry into Hong Kong by the local authorities.
The Hong Kong authorities must also guarantee that the local people and companies that I will need to work with in Hong Kong will not be prosecuted because they have helped a foreign artist remove and dismantle the monument.
It will be difficult to move forward with the planning and procedure before we get the above issues clarified. As soon as I have received a positive message about the cooperation from The University of Hong Kong and the Hong Kong authorities, I will start planning the specific procedure for moving the Monument of the Tiananmen Square Massacre 1989.
I have sent this letter to my legal representative in Hong Kong and asked the representative to send the letter to the Hong Kong authorities and The University of Hong Kong's management and responsible authorities.
I believe, it is important to preserve the history of any country, and I am therefore sorry that my monument, which is a memorial to the events at The Tiananmen Square 1989 in China, is no longer welcome. Of course, I would very much have preferred for the monument to stay at The University of Hong Kong, where it has been for 24 years.
However, in full collaboration with both the university and the Hong Kong authorities, I will remove the sculpture and send it to Denmark.
With the hope of a good and constructive cooperation,
Jens Galschiøt
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17 Oct. 2021
China has attacked art symbol of Tiananmen Square crackdown. We won the first two battles - but everything is uncertain!
We are under attack from China in Hong Kong. In a letter the democracy movement was given a deadline of 4 days to move the 9 m high sculpture, which is a memorial to the Tiananmen square crackdown in 1989, otherwise China would destroy the sculpture that has beeb standing at Hong Kong University for 24 years.
We are quite pressed for time, so we just send this short newsletter.
Everything has been chaos since, and we have mobilized our networks all over the world to prevent the sculpture from being destroyed. And it's been successful so far.
Thousands of NGOs, artists, activists, politicians and other good people have joined the fight to preserve the sculpture, and we have succeeded to postpone the destruction of the artwork.
At the same time, it has succeeded in setting a new standard for what U.S. law firms can allow themselves to do to help the Chinese goverment. Part of the pressure to prevent the destruction of the artwork has been directed at getting the law firm Mayer Brown to withdraw from helping Hong Kong University destroy and remove the sculpture. And we succeeded on the 15th of October.
So 2 battles have been won, but it is still uncertain whether we can get the opportunity to get the sculpture out of Hong Kong.
So we need all the help we can get, by informing about China's attacks on art and freedom of speech. If necessary, Forward this email to a friend or create one yourself.
All the activities have been continuously described by a huge press campaign. We have made a selection of the articles here - good reading - you can probably find something from your own country as well.
Although we have worked ourselves to death, this struggle for art and the Chinese's right to remember their own history is also a very life-affirming experience. The whole process shows that it is possible for ordinary people to enact a little influence on the global stage.
7.380.000 link: A quick Google search word combination "Pillar of Shame" (a word that comes specifically from this sculpture, as we created it ourselves) today gives 7.380.000 links.
"We are still alive". We have written history and shown that there are limits to what the world will allow.
All the best
Jens Galschiøt - The artist behind The Piller of Shame
and his hard-working staff
Denmark 17 Oct 2021
Email: Jens @galschiot.com
Mobile: Tlf: +45 4044 7058
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In 1997, I erected an 8 meter tall monument in Hong Kong in memorial of the massacre. This monument is so far still the only memorial about the Tiananmen Square massacre on Chinese soil.
Placing this sculpture in Hong Kong cost me a permanent expulsion from China and two expulsions from Hong Kong. I think it's important that artists, cultural groups, and others that defend human rights use their freedom of speech to tell the story of the massacre. I hope that you will help in doing this.
32 years after the massacre history seems to be tragically repeating itself. Now with Hong Kong as the epicenter for youth demanding their basic Human Rights and the Chinese Government forcefully fighting down the youth. China has passed landmark legislation to force national security laws in Hong Kong, effectively crushing the city's autonomy, removing pro-democratic forces from the parliament and sending pro-democrats in jail.
In February 2020 I erected ‘A Pillar of Shame’ sculpture in front of the Danish parliament, as a protest against that China is once again using extreme force against youth people demonstrating for their democracy rights, this time in Hong Kong.
The China's National People's Congress are now directly interfering with the justice system and the freedom of speech in Hong Kong, which is an unprecedented violation of the agreement between England and China for the handover of Hong Kong. China has fundamentally changed the status of Hong Kong and basic Human and Democracy rights are no longer respected as they used to be.
I hereby encourage everyone to protest against China’s assault on Hong Kong citizens.
Let us remeber the youth that lost their life at Tiananmen Square and let us support the youth in Hong Kong, so we will not see the same tragic outcome once again.
Kind regards,
Jens Galschiøt
About Hong Kong at the moment
China’s supression of free speech is spreading to Hong Kong. Galschiot is just one of many critics who have been denied entry. So the city is deprived of a cultural exchange that is taken for granted in all open democratic societies. The expulsions are a blatant violation of the principle of ‘One country – Two systems’ that was guaranteed as part of Hong Kong’s reunion with China in ‘97.
In 2013 Galschiøt managed to enter Hong Kong to repair ‘The Pillar of Shame’. In these very years Hong Kong stands on the precipice of realizing the 1997 agreements with China, to develop a real democracy in Hong Kong. But they are under a lot of pressure from non-democratic forces. The results of these negotiations are crucial for the future of Hong Kong.
Throughout 2019 and 2020 massive demonstrations in Hong Kong took place. They fought for their basic human rights that China promised Hong Kong's citizens when they took over the country in 1997, But the peaceful demonstrations have been met with comprehensive violent force from Hong Kong's police.
Today China has passed landmark legislation to force national security laws in Hong Kong, effectively crushing the city's autonomy, removing pro-democratic forces from the parliament and sending pro-democrats in jail.
A functioning democracy on Chinese ground, even though only in Hong Kong, is an extremely important symbol for the more than one billion living in mainland China.
Useful links:
The democracy movement in Hong Kong:
Phone: +852 2782 6111
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About Jens Galschiøt:
Danish artist Jens Galschiøt has created many socio-critical sculptures and installations through the years. Most often they are placed in public spaces around the world – as needle-sticks and silent reminders of a world that, in his opinion, is out of balance, and where exploitation of the world’s resources, inequality and migration are a constant part of the picture.
General information about Galschiøt can be found at:
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Contact to the workshop:
Galleri Galschiøt
Banevænget 22
5270 Odense N
Tlf : (+45) 6618 4058
Fax:(+45) 6618 4158
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