Carrie Lam warns US not to interfere in Hong Kong
The Hong Kong Chief Executive, Carrie Lam, has asked the United States not to interfere with the protests in the Chinese region, which she describes as an internal affair.
On Sunday, tens of thousands of demonstrators in Hong Kong demanded that the US Congress pass a law imposing sanctions on those who violate ‘basic freedoms’ in the former British colony, but at a press conference today, Lamb warned of the economic consequences of such a law.
The demonstrations for more democracy in Hong Kong have been going on for three months now. Last weekend there was another big riot, with tens of thousands of activists going to the American consulate in an attempt to persuade the US to support the protests legally as well.
In Washington, both Democrats and Republicans have already expressed their support for the activists, while President Donald Trump seems to be more pragmatic in his call for a peaceful solution to the conflict. Trump contradicts China’s argument, to which Hong Kong has belonged since 1997, that the US should actively support the protests.
The fact that the US Parliament would pass a law promising sanctions for those who violate rights and freedoms in Hong Kong is a very bad thing for the local government. At a press conference today, Carrie Lam warned that any change in bilateral relations could harm the ‘mutual interests’ of Hong Kong and Washington.
“It is extremely inappropriate for a country to interfere in Hong Kong affairs,” she said. “I hope that no one in Hong Kong will take to the streets again to ask the United States to adopt such a law.”
