Beijing not backing down from brewing battle, underscoring right of Hong Kong agencies to ‘exercise jurisdiction’
- Flurry of Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office statements includes call for opposition lawmaker to step down, face legal consequences of breaking oath
- While office does not intervene ‘in general’, Beijing has duty to react when city’s fundamental interests are harmed, office says
Beijing has warned a Hong Kong opposition lawmaker holding up the work of the legislature to “leave the office” and face the legal consequences of breaking his oath, hammering home an uncompromising message that its agencies in charge of the city’s affairs were acting within their powers to criticise.
The Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office (HKMAO) on Tuesday issued a flurry of statements escalating its war of words with the opposition camp, dismissing concerns about “interference” in the city’s internal affairs and voicing support for the police force regarding the recent arrests of prominent pro-democracy figures over illegal anti-government rallies.
The statements from the cabinet-level office marked the third time in nine days either it or Beijing’s liaison office in the city had issued strongly worded comments on Hong Kong affairs.
On Tuesday, the HKMAO again singled out the Civic Party’s Dennis Kwok, who currently presides over meetings of the Legislative Council’s House Committee.
Both offices on Monday of last week blasted Kwok for allowing pan-democratic filibustering to prevent the election of a new committee chairman, something that has tied up numerous pieces of legislation since October.