Q: On December 21, the foreign ministers of Five Eyes Alliance have issued a joint statement to raise their concern regarding the outcome of the Legislative Council (LegCo) elections in Hong Kong. What is your comment?
A: The Foreign Ministers of Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom, and the Secretary of State of the United States issued a joint statement on Hong Kong. The statement openly finger-pointed over China’s Hong Kong affairs, deliberately attacked Hong Kong’s electoral system and smeared the Legislative Council election, which is a flagrant violation of international law and basic norms governing international relations. The Chinese side is strongly concerned about and firmly opposed to it.
The election for the seventh-term LegCo of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) was successfully held on December 19. This election is a successful practice to comprehensively implement the new electoral system in Hong Kong, which is broadly representative and politically inclusive, and ensures balanced participation and fair competition. It has a far-reaching significance to developing democracy suited to Hong Kong’s realities, shaping a new structure for good governance in Hong Kong, and promoting the steady and sustained implementation of One Country, Two Systems.
Hong Kong is part of China. How to develop democracy in the SAR is purely China’s domestic affair. Whether Hong Kong’s democratic system is good or not should be judged by the Chinese people, including Hong Kong compatriots. The Central Government is committed to fully and faithfully implementing the principle of One Country, Two Systems and to supporting Hong Kong in developing a democratic system that conforms to its constitutional status and realities on the ground. Attempts to interfere in China’s domestic affairs and mess up Hong Kong are all doomed to failure.
The legal basis for the Chinese government’s administration of Hong Kong is China’s Constitution and the Basic Law, not the Sino-British Joint Declaration. No country has the right to use the Joint Declaration as a cover to interfere in Hong Kong affairs. The Chinese government is firmly determined to safeguard national sovereignty, security and development interests, implement One Country, Two Systems, and reject foreign interference in Hong Kong affairs.
The Chinese side urges the Five Eyes Alliance and its member to respect China’s sovereignty, abide by international law and basic norms for international relations, be discreet with their words and deeds, stop interfering in Hong Kong affairs and China’s internal affairs. We hope that relevant country will adhere to an independent foreign policy, maintain the political basis of bilateral relations, and do more to promote Hong Kong’s prosperity and stability and bilateral relations with China.
