The Civic Party, Hong Kong's second largest pro-democracy political party, was dissolved in 2023. A few of its members have also been jailed under the national security law including Alvin Yeung and Jeremy Tam. (Reporting by Anson Law and James Pomfret; additional reporting by Joyce Zhou and Jessie Pang; Editing by William Maclean)

Hong Kong’s largest pro-democracy party took an initial step toward dissolving Thursday, in the latest sign of the Chinese territory’s narrowing space for civil society groups following Beijng’s crackdown on dissent.

The party has been struggling to survive following moves by China to crack down on dissent in the city in the wake of the 2019 protests. Beijing and Hong Kong's government have argued that such moves were necessary for national security.

A 30-year-old Hong Kong political party that used to lead the city's pro-democracy camp before Beijing cracked down on dissent will start preparations to shut down, its leader said Thursday. "Developing democracy in Hong Kong is always difficult,