Members of the Young Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong express their support for the resolution by the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress that clarified the qualifications of office for Hong Kong legislators. The young people also called on the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government to ensure that in the future, candidates in Legislative Council elections as well as incumbent lawmakers are all qualified to hold public office. (PARKER ZHENG / CHINA DAILY)
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Friday accused some foreign countries of blatant double standards for criticizing the decision of China’s top legislature on the qualification of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region lawmakers.
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The Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress announced on Wednesday that lawmakers of the Hong Kong SAR must be disqualified from holding public office for behavior, including separatism, that doesn’t uphold the SAR’s Basic Law and doesn’t honor their vow of allegiance to the SAR.
The standing committee’s decision has drawn criticism from several foreign countries, including the United Kingdom and Australia. The UK even threatened to respond to the move with sanctions.
Which country will allow lawmakers who were meant to separate the nation to assume the office?
Wang Wenbin, Foreign Ministry spokesman
Based on this resolution, the Hong Kong government later disqualified four lawmakers who had sought foreign intervention in Hong Kong affairs and sanctions of Hong Kong officials.
The standing committee’s decision has drawn criticism from several foreign countries, including the United Kingdom and Australia. The UK even threatened to respond to the move with sanctions.
At a Friday news conference in Beijing, Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin dismissed the accusations as double standards, saying that expectations of political loyalty of public officers are an international norm. “Which country will allow lawmakers who were meant to separate the nation to assume the office?” he asked rhetorically.
The standing committee’s decision is needed for the improvement of the “one country, two systems” principle in Hong Kong, and the implementation of the Basic Law and National Security Law in the city. It is also a must to safeguard the SAR’s rule of law and constitutional order, Wang said.
The decision targets only lawmakers who are not upholding the Basic Law and are disloyal to the SAR. It will not hurt the SAR’s autonomy and freedom at all, he continued.
By making an issue of the matter, the foreign countries are actually interfering in China’s internal affairs and violating international laws and norms, Wang said.
Unilateral sanctions imposed by the United States amid the pandemic crisis have caused damage to Hong Kong’s maritime industries, Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor said in a post on her official social media account on Thursday.
Some shipping lines moved their respective businesses out of Hong Kong after the sanctions were imposed, despite the government’s earlier efforts to help the industries — including tax concessions, a maritime and aviation training fund, and the establishment of overseas offices for the Hong Kong shipping registry.
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The four disqualified lawmakers, all of whom had taken oaths to observe HK’s Basic Law and safeguard HK’s interests, had nevertheless lobbied the US administration to enforce sanctions against the city, and did so without considering Hong Kong’s interests and the survival of local industries amid the pandemic and recession crises.
The sanctions have also worsened HK’s business and employment, she said.
Earlier on Thursday, the Commissioner’s Office of Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the HKSAR also urged foreign politicians to keep their hands off Hong Kong affairs.
In a statement, the office said that Hong Kong’s Legislative Council had been hijacked for six months by opposition lawmakers, stalling many livelihood-related bills. It hailed the central authorities’ decision as “the right medicine” to start a new chapter of LegCo operations.
“Do the Western politicians believe only a hijacked and crippled LegCo can uphold the right to political expression and Hong Kong’s democracy and freedom? Their ridiculous allegations are the epitome of hypocrisy and hegemonic logic, ” the statement said.
