Hong Kong CNN — 

  A man has been arrested in Hong Kong on suspicion of sedition after playing the harmonica at a vigil for Queen Elizabeth II, under a colonial-era law that once banned insulting the queen – and has now been revived by authorities amid an ongoing crackdown.   

  Videos posted on social media showed hundreds of people gathering outside the British consulate in the city on Monday night to pay their respects to the Queen as she was laid to rest in London – an event heavy with political significance in the former British colony. where they mourn the monarch.  become a subtle form of protest.   

  Many streamed the funeral procession live on their phones, while others held candles and laid flowers at a memorial.   

  A video shows a man playing his harmonica to the tune of “Glory to Hong Kong,” a protest anthem created during the pro-democracy, anti-government protests that rocked the city in 2019.   

  The soulful ballad, which includes lyrics such as “For Hong Kong, may freedom reign”, has become an anthem of the pro-democracy movement and performances of it have been viewed millions of times on YouTube.   

  At the vigil on Tuesday, crowds waved iPhone flashlights in the dark and sang along to the harmonica, some starting a chant that has also become synonymous with the protests: “Hong Kong, put oil on.”   

  The photos then show police officers arriving and escorting the man to their van.   

  When CNN asked police about the harmonica, they said a 43-year-old man surnamed Pang had been arrested that night around 9:30 p.m.  He was suspected of committing riotous acts and was held for questioning – then released on bail pending an investigation, police said.   

  He will be summoned to appear before the police at the end of November.   

  Hong Kong’s Sedition Act is part of a 1938 Crimes Ordinance that was once used by the colonial government to target pro-China groups and publications – especially after the Chinese Communist Party came to power and during anti-government protests demonstrations in 1967.   

  It originally defined sedition as speech that carried “hatred or contempt” against the Queen, her heirs or the Hong Kong government.   

  The law sat unused for decades until it was revived in 2020 – alongside Beijing’s introduction of a sweeping national security law targeting secession, subversion, collusion with foreign powers and terrorist activities.   

  A conviction under the Sedition Act carries a maximum sentence of two years in prison.   

  The revival of the law – and its use amid a wider crackdown by authorities in Hong Kong and Beijing – has drawn criticism from activists and humanitarian groups around the world.   

  In July, the UN Human Rights Commission urged Hong Kong to repeal the Sedition Law, saying it was concerned it could limit citizens’ “legitimate right to freedom of speech”.   

  Hong Kong’s government has repeatedly denied that the Sedition Act or the National Security Act – which has been used to arrest activists, journalists, protesters and former elected lawmakers – put people’s liberties at risk.   

  The sedition law “is not intended to silence the expression of any opinion that is only genuine criticism of the government based on objective facts,” he said in response to the UN, adding that the national security law “quickly and effectively restored stability and safety.  after the 2019 protests.   

  The crackdown has seen the steady erosion of civil liberties in a once free city with an independent press and a rich protest culture.   

  Most pro-democracy groups have been disbanded, their leaders either jailed or forced into exile, and mass demonstrations are banned.   

  With no traditional avenues of protest – people have now been arrested for social media posts and even publishing children’s books deemed seditious – the Queen’s death emerged this month as an unexpected opportunity for dissent.   

  In celebrating the monarchy and its symbols, some Hong Kongers see an opportunity for a sneaky dig at both the Chinese Communist Party, which has made no secret of its eagerness for Hong Kongers to forget the era, and the local authorities they recently introduced school books.  they claim the city was never even a colony to begin with.   

  A retiree named Wing, who spoke to CNN outside the consulate on Monday but declined to give his full name, said it was “unbelievable” to be part of a mass rally again.   

  “I feel angry that the Hong Kong government is not showing any respect properly (to the Queen).  They are afraid of being told by the Chinese government, but we were part of the colony,” said Wing, who was born in the 1960s.   

  The displays of affection are also a reminder of the city’s pro-democracy protests, in which protesters adopted the colonial flag as a sign of resistance to Chinese one-party rule.   

  However, other critics have pointed out that even under British rule, Hong Kong residents did not have universal suffrage.  And many felt London had neglected its duty by failing to grant British citizenship to Hong Kongers at the time of the handover, offering most a limited passport that did not give them the right to live and work in Britain.   

  Since the introduction of the National Security Act, Britain has created what it calls a pathway to citizenship through a new type of visa.