Britain, European Union needle Beijing by commenting on Hong Kong affairs, analysts say
- Six-monthly reports by British foreign secretary have become more critical, drawing angry warnings, rebukes from Beijing
- British comments welcomed by some, but others say it’s interference in China’s internal affairs
The response from Beijing was swift and stinging after the European Parliament passed a resolution in January calling for action on the “deterioration” of media independence in Hong Kong and repeated calls for sanctions on its top officials.
Condemning the resolution as “a piece of rubbish”, officials said Hong Kong had never had democracy as a British colony before it returned to China in 1997.
Luo Huining, director of Beijing’s liaison office in Hong Kong, said in a speech on January 26 that while the city craved lasting peace and stability, “there always will be hostile forces that refuse to accept defeat”.
He said: “We are confident that as Hong Kong has turned a new page after restoring order from chaos, any attempts by anti-China forces and local saboteurs to disrupt Hong Kong are doomed to fail.”
Beijing’s strong response reminded analysts of what happened in December, when mainland Chinese authorities criticised British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss’ six-monthly report on the state of Hong Kong affairs, raising concerns about judicial independence and highlighting the key role British judges could continue playing to maintain confidence in the city’s legal system.