China resolutely safeguards Hong Kong’s prosperity and stability
Recently, the situation in Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China has garnered attention from the international community. The overseas Chinese living in Suriname, especially the Hong Kong compatriots, recently issued statements and held symposiums, calling to to stop violence and end chaos as soon as possible and upholding Hong Kong's prosperity and stability. Here, I would like to brief the readers of the Times of Suriname on the situation in Hong Kong and help people from all walks of life in Suriname to understand the situation accurately.
The origin of the Hong Kong demonstration and its turn to violence
As everyone knows, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan are all part of China. In February 2018, a Hong Kong resident was suspected of escaping back to Hong Kong after killing his girlfriend in Taiwan. Since Hong Kong has no jurisdiction over the case, in order to transfer the suspect to Taiwan for trial, the Hong Kong SAR Government proposed amendments to the Fugitive Offenders Ordinance and the Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Ordinance which will allow Hong Kong to cooperate with the China mainland, Macao and Taiwan that have not signed a fugitive transfer and criminal justice assistance agreement with Hong Kong to transfer suspects and fugitives through special arrangements. This will not only help deal with the abovementioned individual cases, but also help to plug up the loopholes in the existing legal system to jointly combat crime and demonstrate the rule of law and justice. Since many Hong Kong residents do not know much about the condition, legal system and judicial system of China mainland, there have been several demonstrations and assemblies against the amendment of the above two ordinances since this June. In order to listen more widely to the community views and restore calm to the community as soon as possible, the Hong Kong SAR Government decided to suspend the amendments on June 15.
The SAR police has always approved and provided protection for various peaceful demonstrations and assemblies held by Hong Kong residents. However, some radical demonstrators deliberately created violent incidents, damaged the Hong Kong Legislative Building and blocked the operation of the Hong Kong airport. They incited the hatred of police, attacked the police by lethal means. They even blocked the building of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong SAR, tarnished the national emblems, smeared the words that insult the country and the nation. Their actions are completely beyond the scope of peaceful demonstrations, and have seriously affected the rule of law, social order, economic livelihood and international image of Hong Kong. It's sad to see these for all those people who care about and cherish Hong Kong. Signed Article by Chinese Ambassador LIU Quan