This archive report was first published on 13 October 2019.
On a symbolic gesture to infuse a refreshed mindset for the fight for democracy, a 80-kilogram Lady Liberty statue has been erected on Lion Rock, a 495-meter peak overlooking Hong Kong's densely packed working-class districts.
The statue, created by 32-year-old Alex, depicts a female protester in a gas mask, protective goggles and helmet, an umbrella in one hand and a black flag in the other, proclaiming the protest slogan 'Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times.'
Named after its resemblance to the big cat, Lion Rock has been a symbol of Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement for years, with large banners demanding freedoms or criticising Beijing frequently unfurled by hardy protesters.
The mountain overlooks Kowloon's densely packed working-class districts where many escaping communist China during the worst excesses of the Mao-era first settled.
During 2014's large pro-democracy protests, demonstrators unfurled a huge yellow banner down one of the rock's cliff faces, linking the mountainside to modern-day acts of civil disobedience.
On September 22, hundreds of protesters gathered on Lion Rock and other peaks surrounding the city shining laser pens and lanterns.
The Lady Liberty statue was inspired by the 'Goddess of Democracy' statue that pro-democracy protesters erected in 1989 inside Tiananmen Square before China crushed the movement.
A version of the Goddess of Democracy is a feature of the annual 4 June Tiananmen vigils in Hong Kong, the only place in China where commemorations of the crackdown can still be held.
