American online political commentator Hasan Piker recently went viral after being confronted by security while livestreaming at Beijing’s Tiananmen Square early Tuesday morning.
Footage uploaded to the live video streaming platform Twitch shows Piker and fellow streamers visiting to attend the daily sunset flag-raising ceremony. This ceremony takes place in front of Tiananmen Gate and the large portrait of Chinese Communist Party founder Mao Zedong.
### Why It Matters
Authorities closely monitor recording activities at Tiananmen Square, which is not only a symbol of China’s political power but also the site of major historical events. Notably, it was the location of the pro-democracy protests that government forces violently suppressed on June 4, 1989.
### What To Know
As they awaited the ceremony, Piker joked with influencer Will Neff, saying, “We’re all in Tiananmen Square, so we’re all becoming Chinese. When the time is right, you will look in the mirror and already be Chinese.” Neff responded humorously. (Time stamp: 02:28:00)
Neff then held his phone up to the camera, showing what appeared to be an AI-generated image of Mao Zedong styled to resemble Piker, accompanied by the Maoist slogan, “Closely follow the great leader Chairman Mao forward in the revolution!”
Within seconds, a police officer approached and instructed the group to put away the phone, which they complied with, though the audio continued recording.
“He wants to see the photo,” the translator explained after a brief exchange. Neff replied that he hadn’t taken any photos. The translator relayed the officer’s words: “He said he saw you.” Neff responded, “Oh, I was just holding the camera, but I didn’t do anything yet.”
The officer then requested to review the most recent footage from the livestream. At that moment, the broadcast abruptly cut to black, with an intermission screen displaying the message: “We’re doing secret memes. Be right back.”
When the livestream resumed, Piker and the group were seen laughing about the encounter as they continued their walk toward the square.
“This is awesome. I don’t know why people aren’t enjoying all of this,” Piker said, reacting to the unexpected interaction.
https://www.newsweek.com/hasan-piker-stopped-filming-police-china-11027426
