‘Abandon arrogance, face fact that national security law has restored stability in Hong Kong’: Beijing to UN Human Rights Committee

Beijing has urged the UN Human Rights Committee to “abandon arrogance and face the fact” that the national security law has restored social stability in Hong Kong, after the watchdog proposed the city should “take concrete steps” to repeal the law over threatened civil freedoms.

The Chinese government’s foreign ministry, the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office (HKMAO), and Beijing’s liaison office in Hong Kong all hit back on Thursday after a report released by the UN committee expressed “grave concern” at an “overly broad interpretation” and “arbitrary application” of the security legislation.

It also called for reform of Hong Kong’s electoral system to increase the number of directly elected seats in the Election Committee, a powerful body that selects the city’s leader, and the Legislative Council.

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In a statement released by Xinhua, a spokesman for the cabinet-level HKMAO expressed “firm opposition and strong dissatisfaction” over the UN report, calling comments in the paper “biased and untrue”.

“The promulgation and implementation of the national security law in Hong Kong has helped to restore the rule of law and order, protect residents’ peaceful [lives], bring economic and social development back on track, and promote Hong Kong’s transition from chaos to governance.”

The spokesman also insisted the security law “prevents, stops and punishes illegal acts” by a small minority of people, and guaranteed the rights and freedoms enjoyed by the vast majority of residents. He suggested that the UN needed to be “objective” in promoting human rights.

“We sincerely hope that the future reports of the UN Human Rights Committee will be more factual and less biased and fallacious in the future,” he added.

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In a separate statement, also released by Xinhua, a spokesman for Beijing’s liaison office in Hong Kong said the central government needed to impose the security law to counter foreign interference.

“Under the long-term instigation of Western anti-China forces such as the United States, some anti-China elements in Hong Kong have provoked social confrontation through political and legal issues,” he said.

“We urge relevant international institutions to abandon their arrogance and prejudice, face the successful practice of ‘one country, two systems’ and the basic fact that the Hong Kong national security law maintains social stability and fully protects human rights, and make due objective and fair judgments.”

Earlier on Thursday, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian also told a daily press conference that it was unfair for the committee to have made “rash comments” on the human rights situation in Hong Kong.

“Safeguarding national security is the responsibility of governments of all countries. National security legislation is a common practice in all countries. No country or region in the world will allow acts and activities that endanger national sovereignty and security,” he warned.

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Also on Thursday, the European Union issued a statement to welcome the UN report.

“The EU supports the Human Rights Committee’s recommendations, in particular to repeal both the national security law (NSL) and the sedition law, and to refrain, immediately, from applying them,” a spokesman said.

That was rebutted by a spokesman for the Chinese foreign ministry’s Hong Kong office.

In a statement, he accused the EU of “hyping up Hong Kong-related issues and slandering the central government’s policy towards Hong Kong”.

“We strongly condemn such acts ... The concluding remarks in the report were completely inconsistent with the real human rights situation in Hong Kong and unconvincing. Yet the EU jumped out impatiently to make irresponsible remarks and accusations about Hong Kong affairs, this fully exposed its hypocrisy and sinister intentions of ‘playing the Hong Kong card’,” he said.

“We urge the EU to put its position right ... immediately stop slandering Hong Kong’s rule of law and judicial independence, and immediately stop interfering in Hong Kong affairs and China’s internal affairs.”

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The Hong Kong government had responded to the UN report on Wednesday night, rejecting the committee’s criticisms.

“Despite the delegation’s best efforts to ... clarify misunderstandings about the human rights situation in [Hong Kong], we are very disappointed that the committee still made unfounded criticisms,” a spokesman said, referring to a delegation led by constitutional affairs chief Erick Tsang Kwok-wai earlier this month.

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