US law firm backs out of plan to remove Tiananmen Square statue in Hong Kong

A U.S. law firm has backed out of a plan to remove a statue honoring protesters from Tiananmen Square at a university in Hong Kong on Friday. 

Law firm Mayer Brown said they are no longer participating in the removal of the statue at the University of Hong Kong after they received backlash for the move, Reuters reported. 

The law firm “will not be representing its long-time client (the university) in this matter. We have no further comment.”

Mayer Brown originally said the move to remove the 26-foot-tall copper sculpture was a “real estate matter.”

The statue, which has been there for more than two decades, shows dozens of torn bodies to honor those who died during the pro-democracy protests in China in 1989 at Tiananmen Square, according to Reuters. 

“Our legal advice is not intended as commentary on current or historical events,” Mayer Brown said earlier in the week. The statue was set to be removed Wednesday but is still in place. 

The statue, called the “Pillar of Shame,” was given by a Danish sculpture to The Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements.

The group disbanded last month as some members have been charged with violating the city’s national security law, which has been used to silence pro-democracy voices. 

The members of the group said people in Hong Kong will continue to commemorate Tiananmen Square. The event is not allowed to be commemorated in China. 

The Hill has reached out to the law firm and university for comment.