Hong Kong citizens celebrate the passage of the Law of the People's Republic of China on Safeguarding National Security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) in Causeway Bay of south China's Hong Kong, June 30, 2020. (Photo: Xinhua)

The Chinese Embassy in Switzerland on Wednesday said that the postponement of Hong Kong's Legislative Council election is a reasonable and legitimate move to ensure people's health and safety, in response to the Swiss foreign ministry's concerns and arbitrary comments on the disqualification of some opposition candidates.

Faced with a serious epidemic situation since July, the government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) took the responsible decision to postpone the Legislative Council (LegCo) election. It is a totally justified step to ensure the health of Hong Kong residents and a necessary action to ensure a safe and fair election, said the embassy in a statement posted on its official website.

There is no shortage of precedents around the world for postponing elections due to epidemics and other disasters, and the postponement in Hong Kong is in accordance with international practice, which is reasonable and legitimate, the embassy noted. 

In terms of the disqualification of certain candidates for  the LegCo election, the embassy said that the legal basis for whether a candidate is qualified to stand for election to the Legislative Council of HKSAR is well defined by the Basic Law, national security law for the HKSAR and the election law of Hong Kong, and the disqualification is fully justified and legitimate. 

Before the HKSAR government announced the postponement of Legislative Council elections due to the new COVID-19 outbreak, 12 opposition candidates had been disqualified. Local media reported that some candidates visited the US in August 2019 amid the social unrest, and begged US lawmakers to pass the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act.

"The words and actions of those disqualified candidates have crossed the red line of the law. Some have openly pleaded for 'Hong Kong independence', and others have slavishly called on foreign forces to sanction Hong Kong and interfere in Hong Kong affairs. If they run for office, it is not for the prosperity and stability of Hong Kong, but to cripple the SAR government, to subvert the government and undermine the principle of 'one country, two systems'," said the embassy. 

The embassy further stressed that Hong Kong's national security legislation aims to plug a loophole in security, which is fully compliant with and ensures the implementation of the "one country, two systems."

The rights and freedoms of Hong Kong residents under the law are not affected. Many Western countries, including Switzerland, also have national security laws and some even have more than one, said the embassy in the statement.

Hong Kong affairs are purely China's internal affairs. No foreign government, organization or individual has the right to intervene. The Swiss side should deal with Hong Kong affairs in an objective and impartial manner and refrain from any form of interference, said the embassy.