An app for tracking police in Hong Kong has disappeared from the App Store, where protests over the extradition law are being held. In short, the violators will be returned to their homeland, China, where they may face the death penalty.
The protests began with a silent march, where only lawyers, concerned about the new law, participated, but later ordinary residents joined them. The authorities, of course, responded: the police began with a brutal "demonstration of opportunities" and attempts to disperse the rally, it only angered the residents and made mass protests.
What is this application, since Tim Cook himself began to explain?
HKmap.live made it possible to track the movement of police in the city, which endangered not only police officers, but also residents. It also indicated blocked roads, mass crowds, and other information.
Map from HKmap.live application
This is not the only application that was removed: Quartz, which covered events in Hong Kong, disappeared from the App Store.
What did Apple CEO say?
The document in which Cook expressed his position was primarily intended for Apple employees:
You probably saw the news that we decided to uninstall the HKmap.live application. These decisions are never simple, and it’s even more difficult to discuss such topics during violent public debate. It is because of my great respect for the work that you do every day that I want to share how we made this decision.
It's no secret that technology can be used for the good or the detriment. This case is no different. This application allowed receiving messages about the whereabouts of the police on the map, clashes of protesters and other information. There is nothing forbidden in this information, but the last few days we get data that the application is used to track specific police officers and attack people in precisely those places where the police are absent. This violates not only Hong Kong law, but also the rules of the App Store.
We have made the App Store a safe and secure place for every user. We take this responsibility very seriously, and we strive to maintain it. We carefully examined all the facts and believe that this solution will best protect our users.
Tim Cook
Apple CEO
Everything seems to be logical, but not all residents share Cook's position. For example, Charles Mok, a legislative adviser in Hong Kong, criticized the decision: "The information in the app, on the contrary, helps citizens avoid areas where people who are not involved in criminal activities can be abused by the police."
Trade with China is important to everyone
As usual, this did not go without hidden connotations: by removing the application from the App Store, the company seemed to support China, not Hong Kong residents. And this is quite logical, if you recall that almost all of the company's products are produced and assembled there.
But not only Apple chose China instead of Hong Kong: Blizzard deprived the streamer of monetization for supporting Hong Kong, Google removed the game where you could try yourself as a protester, and the scriptwriters of the animated series "South Park" were the only ones who defended their position after the series about China, where they beat the role of censorship and labor camps.
What do you think about this? Is Apple right or is it a misnomer about Hong Kong residents?
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Chief editor of the blog – Erika J. Wells .
