China blames US for mass Hong Kong protest, says its military can be deployed at Hong Kong’s request to restore order
DHARAMSALA, 24 July: In a bizarre turn of events, China has blamed the US for the mass protest in Hong Kong and demanded the US to ‘withdraw their black hands’.
“We see clear signs of foreign manipulation, orchestration and even organization in the relevant violent incidents,” China’s Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying said at a Regular Press Conference on 23, July 2019 when responding to questions over the US and the UK’s concerns over the mass protest in Hong Kong.
“I hope the US will answer this question honestly and clearly: what role did the US play in the recent incidents in Hong Kong and what is your purpose behind it?” China’s Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying said at a Regular Press Conference on 23, July 2019.
“The US should know that Hong Kong belongs to China, and China does not allow any foreign interference in Hong Kong affairs,” Hua Chunying has said and demanded the US to withdraw its dirty hands from Hong Kong as soon as possible.
Meanwhile, she rubbished the UK’s criticism of the violent scenes in Hong Kong as “unacceptable” and call for a thorough and independent investigation.
“Did the Hong Kong people have the freedom to take to the streets under British colonial rule? Since Hong Kong’s return to the motherland, the policy of “one country, two systems” has been smoothly carried out. Residents in Hong Kong now enjoy an unprecedented level of freedom and rights,” she stated.
Meanwhile, China has said that its military can be deployed at Hong Kong’s request to contain protests and that that they are closely following the developments in Hong Kong, reports the SCMP.
“Some behaviour of the radical protesters is challenging the authority of the central government and the bottom line of one country, two systems. This is intolerable,” he was quoted as saying in the report.
According to the report, Wu Qian, Wu Qian, a spokesman for China’s defence ministry when asked how the Chinese military would handle the Hong Kong situation has replied that the Chinese armed forces stationed in Hong Kong can be deployed to maintain public order at the request of the city’s government while introducing China’s new defence white paper.
“Article 14 of the garrison law has clear stipulations”, the PLA spokesman has said in the report without elaborating further.
Article 14 of Hong Kong’s Garrison Law states that the city’s government can ask the central government for assistance from the PLA’s Hong Kong garrison to maintain public order and for disaster relief.
Should Beijing approve, the garrison would send the troops under the command of the garrison’s highest commander, or an officer authorised by the commander with arrangements made by the Hong Kong government to carry out the specified tasks, and then immediately return to their station, the report concluded.
As many as 430,000 people took part in the seventh week of mass protests in Hong Kong on Sunday since early June to express their displeasure demanding Beijing-backed chief executive, Carrie Lam’s resignation, withdrawal of controversial extradition bill and calling for an investigation into police brutality.
What began as a peaceful protest ultimately turned violent Sunday night as protesters and police clashed and a white-clad masked crowd attacked protesters.
After facing rounds of tear gas and rubber bullets from police, protesters were protesters in Hong Kong were attacked by hundreds of white-clad masked men, dressed in white wielding bamboo sticks and other weapons at the protesters and passengers indiscriminately at and around the Yuen Long MTR station which left 45 hospitalised, including one who is critically injured.
