Hong Kong protesters yesterday rallied in support of demonstrators pushing for a separate Catalonia in northeastern Spain as a Chinese official denounced months of “mad violence” in Hong Kong and forces pushing for independence.
The protests in Spain’s wealthiest region of Catalonia bear some resemblances to the demonstrations in Chinese-ruled Hong Kong, where millions have taken to the streets over five months to vent their anger over what they see as Beijing’s tightening grip on the territory.
Most protesters in Hong Kong want greater democracy, among other demands, although a small minority is calling for independence, a red line for Chinese Communist Party leaders in Beijing.
Photo: EPA-EFE
“It has become more and more clear that it is not a peaceful demonstration in Hong Kong at all, but a violent crime that is mad,” Xie Feng (謝鋒), the commissioner for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Hong Kong, said in a speech yesterday.
“The real purpose of the Hong Kong opposition and the foreign forces behind it is to disrupt Hong Kong, overthrow the legitimate government and seize the power of governance. It is to turn Hong Kong into an independent or semi-independent political entity and subvert ‘one country, two systems,’” he said. “This is a delusion. Hong Kong is China’s Hong Kong.”
Under the terms of the 1997 handover from Britain, Hong Kong was allowed to retain extensive freedoms not enjoyed in mainland China under the “one country, two systems” formula, including an independent judiciary and the right to protest.
However, many Hong Kong residents are angry at what they see as a relentless march toward Chinese control.
A poster advertising yesterday’s demonstration of solidarity with protesters in Catalonia featured the slogan: “United We Stand Against Tyranny.”
Organizers called on people to rally from 7pm at Chater Garden in the heart of the territory.
Their rally is one of the few to have obtained a permit from authorities in the past several weeks.
Independence is a highly divisive issue in Catalonia, which has more than 7 million inhabitants, its own language, legislature and flag.
Some demonstrators waved the Catalan flag at a protest in Hong Kong on Sunday.
Students in Catalonia have boycotted classes and protesters have focused on strategic targets to cause maximum disruption, including the airport serving Barcelona — similar to strategies used by Hong Kong activists.
Demonstrators in Catalonia, who protested for nine consecutive nights from Monday last week, are angry over the conviction of their leaders for sedition and at what they see as attempts to thwart their ambition for greater autonomy from the rest of Spain.
Some Hong Kong protesters went online to urge people not to attend yesterday’s show of support for the Catalan movement, saying that it was too provocative and risked denting international support for their own cause.
Hong Kong authorities in September last year formally banned a group promoting independence from China, the first time a political organization has been outlawed since the 1997 handover.
The Hong Kong Legislative Council on Wednesday formally withdrew planned legislation that would have allowed extraditions to China, a bill that triggered the unrest, but the move was unlikely to end the protests, because it met just one of the pro-democracy demonstrators’ five demands, which include universal suffrage.
CIVIL DEFENSE: More reservists in alternative service would help establish a sound civil defense system for use in wartime and during natural disasters, Kuma Academy’s CEO said While a total of 120,000 reservists are expected to be called up for alternative reserve drills this year, compared with the 6,505 drilled last year, the number has been revised to 58,000 due to a postponed training date, Deputy Minster of the Interior Ma Shih-yuan (馬士元) said. In principle, the ministry still aims to call up 120,000 reservists for alternative reserve drills next year, he said, but the actual number would not be decided later until after this year’s evaluation. The increase follows a Legislative Yuan request that the Ministry of the Interior address low recruitment rates, which it made while reviewing
DETERRENCE: Along with US$500 million in military aid and up to US$2 billion in loans and loan guarantees, the bill would allocate US$400 million to countering PRC influence The US House of Representatives on Friday approved an appropriations bill for fiscal year 2025 that includes US$500 million in military aid for Taiwan. The legislation, which authorizes funding for the US Department of State, US foreign operations and related programs for next year, passed 212-200 in the Republican-led House. The bill stipulates that the US would provide no less than US$500 million in foreign military financing for Taiwan to enhance deterrence across the Taiwan Strait, and offer Taipei up to US$2 billion in loans and loan guarantees for the same purpose. The funding would be made available under the US’ Foreign Military
WARNING: China has stepped up harassment of foreign vessels after its new regulation took effect last month, an official said, citing an incident in the Diaoyutai Islands The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) yesterday linked China’s seizure of a Taiwanese fishing vessel illegally operating in its territorial waters to Beijing’s new regulation authorizing the China Coast Guard to seize boats in waters it claims. Chinese officials boarded and then seized a Taiwanese fishing vessel operating near China’s coast close to Kinmen County late on Tuesday and took it to a Chinese port, the CGA said. The Penghu-registered squid fishing vessel Da Jin Man No. 88 (大進滿88) was boarded and seized by China Coast Guard east-northeast of Liaoluo Bay (料羅灣), 17.5 nautical miles (32.4km) from Taiwan’s restricted waters off Kinmen,
As eight basketball-playing international students appealed to the Taiwanese basketball industry after they were excluded from the draft of an upcoming new league merging the P.League+ and the T1 League, the new league’s preparatory committee spokesperson Chang Shu-jen (張樹人) yesterday said the committee would tomorrow discuss the supplementary measures and whether the international students can join the draft. The students on Tuesday called for support on their right to play in the upcoming new league, after a merger involving the two leagues impacted their eligibility for the draft. The international players from the University Basketball Association (UBA), led by first pick prospect