Hong Kong No 2 official Eric Chan slams US politicians over warnings to bankers set to attend global financial summit in city
- Chief Secretary Eric Chan says comments ‘show the US and other Western countries are using all extreme means to suppress China, including Hong Kong’
- Government is preparing to host Global Financial Leaders’ Investment Summit, the largest event of its kind Hong Kong will have staged since Covid-19 emerged
Hong Kong’s No 2 official has hit out at foreign politicians threatening to sanction bankers for attending a global financial summit next week, saying such warnings show the West will exploit any means to suppress the progress of the city and the rest of the nation.
Chief Secretary Eric Chan Kwok-ki also told a radio programme on Saturday that the government would continue to boost national education in Hong Kong, so young people would understand the opportunities available to them.
He was speaking shortly after Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Erick Tsang Kwok-wai revealed that he was considering extending an oath-taking requirement for public officers to those taking up key posts at statutory bodies.
The administration is preparing to host the Global Financial Leaders’ Investment Summit, the largest event of its kind Hong Kong will have staged since Covid-19 emerged almost three years ago, from Tuesday to Thursday.
Asked to comment on the duo’s threats, Chan said: “This shows the US and other Western countries are using all extreme means to suppress China, including Hong Kong.
“We are just organising an ordinary financial summit, but they link it to human rights and freedom of speech … They just hope the event will fail, and we must stay vigilant.”