'Liu Xiaobo Would Have Been Heartbroken About HK'

The friends of the late Nobel Peace prize laureate, Liu Xiaobo, marked the third anniversary of his death, saying the rights dissident would be "heartbroken" to see Hong Kong being "destroyed" the way it is.

The vocal critic of the mainland government died of liver cancer in 2017 at the age of 61 while serving an 11-year jail sentence for “inciting subversion of state power”.

He was granted medical parole just weeks before his death, and was not allowed to seek treatment abroad.

In a statement, Xiaowaves – a group Liu's friends set up to remember him – said the activist's biggest wish was for mainland people to enjoy freedoms and rights like the way Hong Kongers did.

It said the 2010 Nobel Prize winner loved Hong Kong and had described it as a window to the free world.

With freedom of speech quickly deteriorating in the SAR, the statement said Liu would be "heartbroken" to see the city being "mainlandised" and "communised".

It added that it believes Hong Kongers will continue to resist despite the new national security law.