‘Patriots’ must govern Hong Kong, says top Beijing official

“STAUNCH patriots” must be the ones governing Hong Kong, said ia Baolong head of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office of the State Council (HKMAO), a body coordinating the regions with China’s central government - on Monday.

ia, a top Beijing official, made his comments during a speech on how Beijing could improve its One Country, Two Systems rule, by fully implementing a principle which depends on patriots’ governing Hong Kong.

The One Country, Two Systems policy was set up in the wake of the 1997 handover of the city of Hong Kong from British to Chinese control.

Under the agreements required for the transfer, the Chinese government allowed Hong Kong and its residents to retain many of the freedoms they had enjoyed as a British colony, including freedom of speech and a separate judiciary, until 2047.

But, since June 0, when Beijing imposed a new national security law, instilling and pushing patriotism in Hong Kong has been top of its agenda, a move critics claim is out of touch with the mood of the majority of Hong Kong’s citizens and throws One Country, Two Systems out the window.

He said a “revelation” on the need for patriotism in Hong Kong’s governance came after Chinese President i Jinping listened to Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam’s 2020 report - a

0,000-word plan to get the city back on track, in which she said Hong Kong represented a “gaping hole” in China’s national security.

“Hong Kong’s major transition from chaos and governance ... revealed a profound truth to ensure that the practice of One Country, Two Systems is stable and longterm, we must always adhere to Patriots govern ing Hong Kong,’” ia said.

“To implement Hong Kong people ruling Hong Kong’, it is necessary to insist on patriots ruling Hong Kong’ One Country, Two Systems can then be fully and accurately implemented,” he said.