Danish sculptor Jens Galschiøt created the "Pillar of Shame" sculpture series to commemorate wanton abuse of humanity around the world. The sculptures were to be located in five regions around the world (with one installation falling through). The Pillar of Shame carved in 1997 stood on the campus of the University of Hong Kong; the sculpture includes forms of twisted and distressed people, as well as the words "The Tiananmen Massacre, June 4th 1989" and "The old cannot kill the young forever", to condemn the bloody crackdown carried out during the Tian'anmen Square Incident.
On the night of June 4th, 1997, after the 8th anniversary Candlelight Vigil for the June 4th Massacre, students from the University of Hong Kong attempted to have the Pillar of Shame permanently installed on their campus, but were stopped by security guards, and then reported to the police. After a large number of police arrived, the students protected the Pillar of Shame by forming a human chain, and shouted slogans such as "Police protect democracy", "Defend the freedom of Hong Kong people" and "Defend the Pillar of Shame".
During the confrontation, the police confiscated the keys to the van carrying the Pillar of Shame, while the students called on the police not to intervene in the conflict between the students and the school. In the end, the police withdrew on the grounds that "the school did not give a clear answer" and that "the school is a private place". The students transported the Pillar of Shame to the platform of the Haking Wong Building with a great deal of joy.
In 2008, in response to the Orange Democratic Movement initiated by Jens Galschiøt, members of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China and the Hong Kong Federation of Students painted the Pillar of Shame orange to express their resistance to authority.
Since 2020's passage of the National Security Law, the situation in Hong Kong has grown grimmer and grimmer. In October 2021, the University of Hong Kong sent a letter to the disbanded Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, demanding that the Pillar of Shame sculpture be removed. In response, Jens Galschiøt issued an open letter requesting full assistance from the University of Hong Kong in removing the Pillar of Shame from Hong Kong, and seeking assurances from the government that he and his team would not be arrested for coming to Hong Kong to retrieve the Pillar. In an interview with "Initium Media", he said, "Of course I hope that the Pillar of Shame can remain in Hong Kong. It has become part of the stories of Hong Kong and China. However, my lawyer thinks it would be very difficult to keep it there, with the National Security Law in place. For now, I would like to transport it out of Hong Kong first, then ship it to the US for an exhibition. It would be safer in the US, as Denmark might not be able to withstand an assault from China." The night of December 23rd, the Pillar of Shame was removed.
References: [Campus TV, HKUSU 香港大學學生會校園電視(Chinese)] (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNXoQS9EA4c); [端傳媒("Initium Media")(Chinese)] (https://theinitium.com/project/20211020-photo-pillar-of-shame/); [立場新聞("Stand News")(Chinese)(1)] (https://www.thestandnews.com/politics/據報擬遷國殤之柱-港大不回應揣測-譚耀宗不利國安應搬走-蔡耀昌-看不到改動理由); [(2)] (https://www.thestandnews.com/society/港大國殤之柱範圍-晚上遭圍板白布圍封); [紐約時報中文網("New York Times Chinese Edition")(Chinese)] (https://cn.nytimes.com/opinion/20211125/hong-kong-university-china/zh-hant/)