LONDON — Britain criticized on Thursday what it mentioned was the systematic erosion of freedoms in Hong Kong by the Chinese authorities and a crackdown on free speech by authorities within the former British colony.
The criticism, contained within the authorities’s newest six-monthly report on Hong Kong, accused China of diminishing the lifestyle promised to the folks of Hong Kong and repeated its view that Beijing had damaged the phrases of its 1997 handover.
“Freedoms are being systematically eroded by Beijing on multiple fronts, tightening the restrictions on the lives of ordinary Hong Kongers,” British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly mentioned within the foreword of the report, which lined the primary half of 2022.
“The authorities continue to crack down on free speech, the free press, and free assembly. Individuals and civil society groups are censoring themselves, and most independent news outlets have been forced to close.”
The Chinese embassy in London didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark. China has up to now responded to related criticism by accusing Britain of performing with a colonial mindset.
Hong Kong returned from British to Chinese rule greater than 25 years in the past with a deal guaranteeing a excessive diploma of autonomy, together with freedom of speech, below a “one country, two systems” system.
“There is no doubt that China is failing to comply with the Sino-British Joint Declaration. Hong Kong’s rights and freedoms have been sacrificed to facilitate greater control by Beijing, undermining Hong Kong’s autonomy,” Cleverly mentioned.
“China is diminishing the way of life promised to Hong Kong 25 years ago.”
In June 2020, Beijing imposed a nationwide safety legislation to punish terrorism, collusion with international forces, subversion and secession with attainable life imprisonment.
That laws has been repeatedly condemned by British authorities. The UN Human Rights Committee final yr mentioned it ought to be repealed. Critics additionally say authorities are utilizing it to stifle dissent, a cost officers in Hong Kong and Beijing reject.
Earlier this week Hong Kong and Chinese authorities expressed robust opposition after a British minister met the authorized staff of Jimmy Lai, a jailed pro-democracy Hong Kong tycoon and founding father of the now shut pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily. — Reuters
