After HK activist given asylum, China says UK sheltering ‘criminals’
BEIJING: China on Thursday accused the UK of sheltering “wanted criminals” after prominent Hong Kong activist Nathan Law said he had been granted political asylum there.
Law said on Wednesday he had been granted asylum in Britain, after fleeing the semi-autonomous territory following the introduction of a sweeping new security law. That provoked an angry response in Beijing.
“The UK is clearly a platform for Hong Kong independence agitators, and provides so-called shelter for wanted criminals,” foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told reporters.
Describing Law as a “criminal suspect,” Zhao called the move “gross interference” in Hong Kong’s judiciary. “The UK should immediately correct its mistake, and stop interfering in Hong Kong affairs and China’s internal affairs,” he added.
Law, a 27-year-old former Hong Kong lawmaker and student activist, fled to the UK in July 2020 in the weeks after the national security Law was imposed. “The fact that I am wanted under the National Security Law shows that I am exposed to severe political persecution and am unlikely to return to Hong Kong without risk,” Law wrote on Twitter.
Britain has pledged 43 million pounds ($59 million) to help people arriving from Hong Kong find jobs, houses and schools under an initiative allowing millions to resettle after China’s imposition of new security laws.
An escalating row with Beijing over reforms in Hong Kong has seen Britain open its doors to more than 5 million people, offering them the chance to live and work in the country and eventually apply for citizenship.