In this file photo taken on June 30, 2017, Joshua Wong Chi-fung (front) speaks during an interview in front of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government headquarters in Hong Kong, south China. Photo: Xinhua

In response to the US State Department spokesperson's blatant support for anti-China and Hong Kong-disrupting figure Joshua Wong, as well as the malicious smearing of the Hong Kong police's legitimate law enforcement actions and the open interference in affairs of Hong Kong and China's internal affairs, a spokesperson for the Commissioner's Office of the Chinese Foreign Ministry in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) expressed strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition on Wednesday.

On June 6, the Hong Kong Police Force's national security department arrested a 28-year-old man in Stanley for suspected "conspiracy to collude with a foreign country or with external elements to endanger national security," according to an official statement on the HKSAR Government's website.

According to multiple Hong Kong media reports, the arrested man is Joshua Wong Chi-fung, an anti-China separatist who was taken into custody again while already serving a prison sentence.

The spokesperson noted that Hong Kong is a society governed by the rule of law where laws must be observed and lawbreakers held to account. The Hong Kong police handle cases involving destabilizing anti-China elements in Hong Kong in accordance with the law, and the judiciary delivers fair and impartial rulings. 

The police's actions are both legitimate and lawful. The US has repeatedly used the pretexts of "human rights" and "freedom" to support its political pawns, clearly exposing its sinister intentions, the spokesperson added.

China once again warns the US side that external interference will in no way undermine the SAR government's firm determination to govern Hong Kong in accordance with the law and punish criminal acts. Nor will it weaken the central and SAR governments' strong will to safeguard national security or  hinder the steady and long-term implementation of "one country, two systems." 

"We urge the US to recognize the broader trend, change course and immediately stop its futile attempts to shield and whitewash lawbreakers. The US must cease its political manipulation of using Hong Kong to contain China," the spokesperson said.

Global Times