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Former Democratic lawmakers Andrew Wan, on the left, Lam Cheuk-ting, second on the left, and Helena Wong, on the right, at a press conference after being released on bail.
Photo AP / Kin Cheung, file
The United States on Sunday joined Australia, the United Kingdom and Canada in condemning the recent arrest of dozens of pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong.
Fifty-five people, including U.S. human rights lawyer John Clancey, gathered last week to run in unofficial election primaries for the legislative elections, in violation of Chinese law aimed at reducing dissent in Hong Kong, semi-autonomous.
“It is clear that national security law is being used to eliminate dissent and opposing political views,” U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his counterparts from the other three nations said in a joint letter. issued on Sunday.
“We call on the central authorities of Hong Kong and China to respect the legally guaranteed rights and freedoms of the people of Hong Kong without fear of being arrested and detained.”
Those arrested under the law have not been formally charged and almost all have been released without bail.
The Hong Kong government fired with a statement of its own, defending law enforcement.
“We are dismayed by the statements of some overseas government officials who seemed to suggest that people with certain political beliefs should be immune to legal sanctions,” the statement said.
In 2019, Hong Kong was shaken by months of often violent protests demanding a more democratic government.
The Chinese Communist Party has been the target of increasingly oppressive practices, even while being heard in the judging of nations like the US.
With publishing cables