Aerial photo taken on March 6, 2021 shows people displaying China's national flag and the flag of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region in support of implementing the principle of "patriots administering Hong Kong" at Tamar Park in Hong Kong, south China.(Photo: Xinhua)
The Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) on Saturday voiced strong opposition to the so-called statements of a very few Western countries about the decision by the National People's Congress (NPC) on improving the electoral system of the HKSAR.
Those statements trampled on international laws and basic norms governing international relations and came as blatant interference in China's internal affairs, the spokesperson of the office said, stressing that such acts are hegemonic and aimed at containing China's development.
Since Hong Kong's return to the motherland, Hong Kong residents have enjoyed more extensive democratic rights than at any other time in history, the spokesperson said.
However, when Hong Kong was gripped by the social unrest in 2019, in which anti-China disruptors carried out "Hong Kong independence" and "mutual destruction" schemes and jumped on the loopholes of the electoral system to endanger national security, some western countries and external forces added fuel to the fire and covered up the rioters, plunging Hong Kong further into the abyss, the spokesperson said.
While the NPC's decision has solid legal ground and wins widespread support in Hong Kong, some countries vigorously smeared the decision and distorted facts under the name of "democracy" and "freedom," which was in fact aimed at messing up Hong Kong and China, the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson condemned the Western countries' statements as sheer prejudice and double standards, and pointed out that no country would allow an unpatriotic person to hold public office.
At the 46th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council, Belarus delivered a joint speech on behalf of 71 countries, emphasizing that Hong Kong affairs are China's internal affairs and should not be interfered by external forces, the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson said improving the electoral system of the HKSAR is China's internal affairs and any interference will be hit back hard by all the Chinese people, including Hong Kong compatriots.