Carrie Lam was speaking a year after the largest demonstration ever held in Hong Kong. (File)
Hong Kong:
Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam on Tuesday urged opponents of Beijing’s plan to impose national security legislation in the financial center to stop “spoiling” the effort, saying those who did it were “the enemy of the people”.
Beijing announced last month a plan to introduce legislation in Hong Kong to combat secession, subversion, terrorism and foreign interference.
Critics see this as the most serious threat to a “one country, two systems” formula, agreed when the former British colony returned to Chinese power in 1997, aimed at guaranteeing its freedoms and its role as a global financial center.
The Chinese government and the Lam-supported municipal administration say the law will not restrict freedoms but will target a small number of “troublemakers” and help restore stability after a year of anti-government protests.
“I urge opponents who still use the usual tactics to demonize and smear the work to stop because by doing so they become the enemy of the people of Hong Kong,” Lam said at a cabinet meeting. , referring to the legislation.
“The vast majority want to restore stability and have security, satisfaction and jobs.”
Lam was speaking a year after the largest demonstration ever held in Hong Kong, when about 2 million people, according to the organizers, marched against another bill the city wanted to introduce that would have allowed extraditions to mainland China.
Critics saw the bill as a threat to judicial independence and although it was later withdrawn, protests broadened into a campaign for greater democracy and clashes with the police intensified .
This year, the coronavirus epidemic has led to a lull in the protests, but they have resumed since Beijing announced the security bill.
The details have not been released, but have come under heavy criticism, not only by democracy activists but also by diplomats, lawyers and business leaders who also fear that it may infringe rights and freedoms. .
Lam also said the government is considering easing restrictions to stop the coronavirus, but is unlikely to be completely removed.
The borders of Hong Kong are almost completely closed and groups are limited to eight people although life is returning to normal.
The rules helped limit the number of protesters, with police citing the coronavirus by denying requests for the gathering.
(With the exception of the title, this story was not edited by GalacticGaming staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
