Top Beijing officials in charge of Hong Kong affairs yesterday lashed out at critics of the territory’s new national security law, calling them “mantises and flies.”
Hong Kong authorities last month enacted the territory’s second national security law, which expanded on legislation Beijing imposed four years ago to quell dissent after massive democracy protests in 2019 were quashed.
The two laws together punish nine categories of broadly defined crimes — ranging from sedition and insurrection to foreign interference and theft of state secrets — with some carrying penalties of up to life imprisonment.
Photo: Bloomberg
The latest law raised concerns over further infringement of human rights from the UN and several countries, including the UK, the US, Australia and Canada.
It has also triggered discussions about Hong Kong’s prospects as it charts a sluggish economic recovery post-COVID-19, even though officials say the law would usher in stability and prosperity.
During the territory’s official celebration of China’s National Security Education Day, a top Beijing official said the law would act as “a guardian angel” for global investors, “protecting their rights, freedom, assets and investments.”
“For an extremely small number of people who endanger national security, this law is an overhanging sharp sword,” Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office Director Xia Baolong (夏寶龍) said.
“Hong Kong’s development would not be stopped by a few mantises and flies,” he added in a speech from Beijing.
Speaking at the ceremony in Hong Kong, Zheng Yanxiong (鄭雁雄), Beijing’s liaison chief in the territory, declared “tit-for-tat cognitive warfare” against critics of the law.
“Some ill-intentioned foreign forces have been bad-mouthing China and Hong Kong ... and even some renowned Western media has joined the wagon of slandering and smearing,” Zheng said, adding that “our only way to survive is to unite and fight.”
Hong Kong authorities have sent at least seven letters to several foreign media outlets since last month, condemning them for “misleading” reports on the new law.
US news outlet Radio Free Asia last month announced that it had closed its Hong Kong office, citing concerns about staff safety, while media watchdog Reporters Without Borders last week said a representative was denied entry into Hong Kong.
More than 290 people have been arrested, 174 charged and 114 convicted — most of them prominent pro-democracy politicians, activists and journalists — since Beijing’s first security law was enacted.
Seven people sustained mostly minor injuries in an airplane fire in South Korea, authorities said yesterday, with local media suggesting the blaze might have been caused by a portable battery stored in the overhead bin. The Air Busan plane, an Airbus A321, was set to fly to Hong Kong from Gimhae International Airport in southeastern Busan, but caught fire in the rear section on Tuesday night, the South Korean Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said. A total of 169 passengers and seven flight attendants and staff were evacuated down inflatable slides, it said. Authorities initially reported three injuries, but revised the number
A colossal explosion in the sky, unleashing energy hundreds of times greater than the Hiroshima bomb. A blinding flash nearly as bright as the sun. Shockwaves powerful enough to flatten everything for miles. It might sound apocalyptic, but a newly detected asteroid nearly the size of a football field now has a greater than 1 percent chance of colliding with Earth in about eight years. Such an impact has the potential for city-level devastation, depending on where it strikes. Scientists are not panicking yet, but they are watching closely. “At this point, it’s: ‘Let’s pay a lot of attention, let’s
‘BALD-FACED LIE’: The woman is accused of administering non-prescribed drugs to the one-year-old and filmed the toddler’s distress to solicit donations online A social media influencer accused of filming the torture of her baby to gain money allegedly manufactured symptoms causing the toddler to have brain surgery, a magistrate has heard. The 34-year-old Queensland woman is charged with torturing an infant and posting videos of the little girl online to build a social media following and solicit donations. A decision on her bail application in a Brisbane court was yesterday postponed after the magistrate opted to take more time before making a decision in an effort “not to be overwhelmed” by the nature of allegations “so offensive to right-thinking people.” The Sunshine Coast woman —
BORDER SERVICES: With the US-funded International Rescue Committee telling clinics to shut by tomorrow, Burmese refugees face sudden discharge from Thai hospitals Healthcare centers serving tens of thousands of refugees on the Thai-Myanmar border have been ordered shut after US President Donald Trump froze most foreign aid last week, forcing Thai officials to transport the sickest patients to other facilities. The International Rescue Committee (IRC), which funds the clinics with US support, told the facilities to shut by tomorrow, a local official and two camp committee members said. The IRC did not respond to a request for comment. Trump last week paused development assistance from the US Agency for International Development for 90 days to assess compatibility with his “America First” policy. The freeze has thrown
RSS