U.S., Australian, Canadian and British diplomats on Sunday issued a joint statement condemning the detention of more than 50 Hong Kong activists, proving that the city’s stringent new national security legislation is being used to target dissidents.
Hong Kong officials announced about 55 arrests last week, the largest mass arrest since China imposed the new national security order in 2020, reports The Associated Press. Both but three were released on bail.
The majority of the detainees participated in an unofficial by-election for a legal election that has since been postponed, which according to the Hong Kong authorities is a violation of the law.
“It is clear that the National Security Act is being used to dispel differences of opinion and opposing political views,” the United States Secretary of State said in a statement. Mike Pompeo
Mike Pompeo Pompeo, Cruz and other Trump allies condemn Twitter’s ban on President Sanders defending the push to accuse Trump: Rebellion will not be tolerated Pompeo meets with Biden nominee for state as part of transition MORE, Australian Foreign Secretary Marise Payne, British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab and Canadian Foreign Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne. “We call on the central authorities of Hong Kong and the Chinese to respect the legally guaranteed rights and freedoms of the people of Hong Kong without fear and arrest.”
Pompeo separately announced over the weekend that the U.S. would remove diplomatic restrictions on relations with Taiwan, which had previously been imposed as a concession to Beijing, which views the island’s Chinese territory.
Hong Kong officials accuse diplomats of improper interference in sovereign affairs, saying: “We are upset about remarks by some overseas government officials that people with certain political beliefs should be immune from legal sanctions.”
Western diplomats call the national security law one of the Chinese government’s most explicit steps to defend Hong Kong’s autonomy since the British government transferred control in 1997 under a “one nation, two systems” rule. It follows protests that lasted much of 2019 over a bill that has since been repealed, allowing the extradition of some suspects to China.