Cancelled flights are shown on a screen at Hong Kong International Airport in Hong Kong, south China, Aug. 12, 2019. (Xinhua/Wang Shen)
Foreign government officials and experts have recently expressed their condemnation of the violence perpetrated by radical demonstrators in Hong Kong.
Emphasizing the significance of "one country, two systems" for the development of Hong Kong, they also voiced their support for the legitimate actions taken by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government and Hong Kong police to restore order.
Mohammad Faisal, spokesperson of Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said Pakistan understands the actions taken by the Chinese central government and the HKSAR government to uphold national sovereignty and maintain Hong Kong's prosperity and stability.
Hong Kong's affairs are completely China's domestic affairs, Faisal said, noting that all nations should abide by basic norms and international law to avoid interference.
Singapore's Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for Law Kasiviswanathan Shanmugam said during an interview with local media that there has been a breakdown of law and order, which any government will have to deal with.
Helen Sham-Ho, former deputy president of the Legislative Council of New South Wales in Australia, said Hong Kong is favored by tourists and investors as the Pearl of the Orient, but the current chaotic situation there is damaging its prosperity.
There is no doubt that the priority is to resume order, and the police have the right to uphold law and order, she said, adding that police have behaved quite patiently.
In reference to the recent attacks on Hong Kong police and the blockade of Hong Kong International Airport by some radical demonstrators, Abdulaziz Alshaabani, Saudi Arabia's expert on Chinese affairs, said such radical acts seriously undermined the rule of law, hindered economic development and harmed the interests of the people of Hong Kong.
If violence deteriorates further, Hong Kong's prosperity and stability will suffer a severe blow, undermining its due international image and status, the expert said, adding that Hong Kong should get back on track as soon as possible and restore social stability.
The continued chaos in Hong Kong, apparently created by anti-government protesters and encouraged by foreign influence, must be quickly stopped, Wilson Lee Flores, columnist of The Philippine Star newspaper, told Xinhua.
Strong measures should be taken as the chaos is not only bad for Hong Kong's economy and tourism, but also disadvantageous for the prosperity of the East Asian region as Hong Kong is an important finance and trade center, he said.
The deteriorating situation will not only bring no benefits to Hong Kong itself, but harm the surrounding regions and the world at large, warned Kim Jin-ho, a professor of politics and diplomacy at South Korea's Dankook University.
"They should solve the problem through close communication and legal procedures, instead of using violence and illegal measures, which is really dangerous," Kim said. "Dialogue and communication is the fundamental way to produce win-win outcomes."
