Rioters hit police vehicles with bricks and smashed the windshield of one car on May 24, 2020 in Hong Kong, China. (Photo from social media page of Hong Kong police)
The Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) on Monday strongly condemned the illegal assemblies and violent acts by rioters in Hong Kong.
A spokesperson of the office said in a statement that rioters on Sunday took part in illegal assemblies in central area of Hong Kong Island, and some even openly called for "Hong Kong independence."
The rioters blocked roads, vandalized public facilities, set fire, and beat up innocent people, causing severe damage to the security of people's lives and properties and endangering national security, said the spokesperson.
The spokesperson denounced opposition figures and radical forces who have instigated another round of violence starting from May 1 and wreaked havoc on Sunday under the excuse of opposing the national security legislation in HKSAR and the National Anthem Bill.
There acts were carried out in disregard of people's wish for a peaceful environment, the spokesperson said.
The rioters Sunday gathered at Hong Kong's Causeway Bay and Wan Chai area, shouted slogans of "Hong Kong independence," waved flags of foreign countries, blocked roads, trashed Chinese-funded enterprises and stores and public transport facilities, and assaulted police officers, the spokesperson said, stressing that at least 10 people including four police officers were injured and sent to hospitals due to these violent acts.
Most horrifying is that rioters even used a long stick to batter a woman who tried to go through the barricade they set up, and used sticks and umbrellas to beat up a lawyer who was against blocking roads, the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson condemned the illegal violent acts which will not be tolerated in any civilized society, saying that the office firmly supported the Hong Kong police in bringing those rioters to justice and strictly enforcing the law.
The spokesperson said the rioters' wanton acts unveiled how they colluded with foreign forces, created terror and incited "Hong Kong independence," and tried to destroy the Hong Kong society with the "burn with us" tactic.
All these facts proved that it is imperative and urgent to introduce national security legislation for Hong Kong, said the spokesperson.
More and more Hong Kong residents have realized that the interests and boons of the majority will be harmed and the prospect of Hong Kong and the "one country, two systems" will be ruined if the wrong doings of this small group of people could not be stopped in time, the spokesperson said.
A petition activity was launched on Sunday through street stands across Hong Kong and online in support of the national security legislation for Hong Kong, with the number of supporters quickly amounting to over 500,000 by Sunday and the figure still climbing, which showed the residents' full support for safeguarding national security, fighting against violence and saying no to "burn with us," the spokesperson said.
There are various signs that some extreme radicals are stepping up planning for larger-scale illegal and violent acts in an attempt to fully apply the "burn with us" tactic, the spokesperson pointed out.
"We sternly warn these people and the forces behind them not to underestimate the central government's rock-firm determination to uphold national sovereignty, security and development interests and to safeguard Hong Kong's prosperity and stability and Hong Kong compatriots' fundamental interests," the spokesperson said.
The central government is ready to deal with all kinds of complicated situations, the spokesperson stressed, warning that those who insist on the wrong path will definitely be punished by law.
