First: I am literally one of the least-informed people on the current situation in Hong Kong, and specifically Big 4 employees' roles in the protests. So I am i

First: I am literally one of the least-informed people on the current situation in Hong Kong, and specifically Big 4 employees' roles in the protests. So I am in no ways casting judgment or agreeing with either side here - I have no position from which to do so. But taking the article at face value, they specifically mention "violence" and "illegal acts", which are by no means "free speech." If an employee of a company is indeed objectively causing violence and performing illegal acts, that's certainly a fireable offense. Which is all the anodyne statements from the companies come out and say - we don't condone violence or illegal acts, and individual employees' free speech and political participation otherwise is their own.