Hong Kong Disqualifies 12 Pro-Democracy Figures from Election Candidacy... Western Countries Strongly Condemn

Labour UK Foreign Secretary "Regret over Violation of Rights and Freedoms"
Former Governor Chris Patten "China is a Police State"

[Asia Economy Beijing=Special Correspondent Cho Young-shin] The Hong Kong government has disqualified 12 opposition pro-democracy figures, including Joshua Wong, from running in the upcoming general election in September. Western countries such as the United Kingdom strongly condemned China's political retaliation.

According to the South China Morning Post (SCMP) on the 31st, Hong Kong authorities rejected the candidate registrations of pro-democracy activists ahead of the first election since the implementation of the National Security Law. The reason given was that they violated the constitution by resisting Hong Kong's National Security Law.

The Hong Kong Electoral Affairs Commission stated in a public announcement the previous day that individuals who support Hong Kong independence or have requested foreign governments to support Hong Kong independence, who have expressed opposition to the Hong Kong Security Law, and who are clearly expected to use opposition votes after being elected to impose political demands on the government, cannot run for public office.

The UK reacted strongly to this decision by Hong Kong authorities. Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab condemned the Hong Kong authorities' decision to disqualify opposition pro-democracy candidates from running in the Hong Kong Legislative Council election, emphasizing that "promises made to the people of Hong Kong must be kept." He further criticized the Chinese government, stating that "this decision undermines the 'One Country, Two Systems' principle that defines the relationship between China and Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Basic Law (Hong Kong's mini-constitution), and the rights and freedoms guaranteed by the Sino-British Joint Declaration."

Former Hong Kong Governor Chris Patten also criticized the Chinese government by referring to a "police state" in response to the disqualification of the 12 pro-democracy candidates. He described it as an "absurd political purge of Hong Kong democrats" and stressed that "the Hong Kong National Security Law is being used to disenfranchise the majority of Hong Kong citizens."

In addition to the UK, former and current politicians from more than ten countries voiced a unified stance against the Hong Kong authorities' recent measures. U.S. Senator Marco Rubio and former UK Conservative Party leader Iain Duncan Smith raised their voices, saying, "The international community must not stand by while Hong Kong's rights and freedoms are violated," and called for the European Union (EU) to impose sanctions on China and Hong Kong.

This decision has gradually diminished expectations that the pro-democracy camp would hold a majority of the 70 seats in the Legislative Council.

Meanwhile, SCMP also reported the possibility of the election being postponed. SCMP stated, "While pro-Beijing lawmakers are advocating for the postponement of the election citing the spread of COVID-19, opposition figures claim that pro-Beijing lawmakers are obstructing the election."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.