On October 21, the US Department of State issued a negative press statement on its website alleging on “the Continued Erosion of Freedoms in Hong Kong”, which makes wanton and groundless accusations on Hong Kong and China's internal affairs. The Chinese side expresses strong concern and firm opposition to it.

    Hong Kong affairs are purely China's internal affairs, and no foreign country has the right to interfere. In accordance with the Basic Law and the regulations of the Hong Kong SAR, it is fully legitimate, lawful and indisputable for the SAR government to disqualify the related district councilors. During its colonial rule of over 150 years, Hong Kong had never had any election or democracy, and Hong Kong people had never enjoyed any real freedom. In contrast, since the return of Hong Kong to China, Hong Kong people have been able to enjoy unprecedented democratic rights and extensive freedoms. More recently, with the effective implementation of the Hong Kong national security law and the principle of “patriots governing Hong Kong”, the violent chaos in Hong Kong has been stopped, Hong Kong people’s legal rights and freedoms have been better protected, and the city’s unique advantages and development potential better tapped. These have fundamentally guaranteed the stable and long-term development of “One Country, Two Systems”. 

    Last month, China released the “Fact Sheet: U.S. Interference in Hong Kong Affairs and Support for Anti-China, Destabilizing Force”. What the US is doing will only make the fact sheet even longer. These facts and evidence have fully exposed the hypocrisy and double standards of the United States in democracy, freedom, human rights and rule of law, as well as its hegemonic nature, its obsession with sanctimonious preaching, and its sinister intention to contain China by disrupting Hong Kong. Pretending to care about the rights and freedoms of Hong Kong people, the US only has sabotaging Hong Kong’s rule of law and destabilizing Hong Kong in mind. We alert those forces working on this that the enactment and implementation of the national security law and the improvement of its electoral system have delivered stability and prosperity to the city, and have provided a powerful legal weapon to cut off the external “black hands”. Their conspiracy will never succeed.

    We urge the US side to take real actions to follow through on the spirit of the phone call between our Presidents, exercise caution on Hong Kong-related issues, and create conditions for China-US relations to return to the track of healthy and stable development.