republicworld– The elections for the seventh Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region were conducted on December 19. In a new development, China has criticised the remarks made by the United Kingdom and all of its allies regarding the electoral system in Hong Kong.
The Chinese Embassy spokesperson in the United Kingdom issued a statement on 20th December, “strongly” urged the handful of countries including the UK to recognise the results trend and respect China’s sovereignty and unity.
Furthermore, the Chinese Embassy spokesperson in the UK called on the countries to not interfere in the matters related to Hong Kong and China.
The Chinese Embassy spokesperson in the United Kingdom made the statement after the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs of the UK issued a joint statement with the Secretary of State of the United States and the Foreign Ministers of Australia, Canada and New Zealand expressing “grave concern” over the election results of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong.
The Chinese Embassy spokesperson in the UK has expressed “firm opposition” and “strong condemnation” over the comment made by the foreign ministers of the other four countries. The embassy spokesperson further mentioned that the “election was smooth, fair” and this election showed a “rational and constructive culture”. The elections will be the first since the passage of the National Security Law in June 2020 and as per the ANI report, all of Hong Kong’s major opposition leaders have been in prison or exile.
US, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand issue statement
Earlier on December 20, the Foreign Ministers of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom, and the United States Secretary of State issued a statement expressing “grave concern” over the erosion of democratic elements of Hong Kong’s Special Administrative Region.
The foreign ministers pointed out that since the handover, candidates with different political views contested elections, however, the elections that were held on December 19 reversed the trend.
They noted that as Hong Kong’s electoral system was introduced earlier this year, there is a decrease in the number of directly elected seats. Furthermore, they pointed out that a new vetting process has been implemented to “severely restrict” the choice of candidates on the ballot paper.
They raised concern over the effect of the National Security Law and the growing restrictions on freedom of speech and freedom of Assembly. They urged the Chinese authorities to act according to international obligations to respect protected rights and fundamental freedoms in Hong Kong.
