The man who was set on fire by a rioter in Hong Kong remained in critical condition on Tuesday, the Hong Kong police said.
The 57-year-old man got into a dispute with rioters over political views on a footbridge in the Ma On Shan area on Monday. He was beaten up brutally, and was poured with suspected flammable liquid and set on fire by a rioter.
The man was admitted to Prince of Wales Hospital in critical condition. The Fire Services Department said he had second-degree burns on 28 percent of his body.
The police said at a press briefing on Tuesday that the man remained in critical condition in hospital, suffering severe burnt in his head and upper body.
Referring to it as one of the most shocking cases of rioters using random and indiscriminate violence against innocent persons, Senior Superintendent of Police Public Relations Branch Kong Wing-cheung said the case is classified as attempted murder.
The Chinese central government on Tuesday strongly condemned the rioters' criminal deed of setting a civilian on fire, and called for prompt actions to arrest the rioters and punish them in accordance with the law.
The rioters' deed of setting a man on fire and attempting murder in the light of the day is appalling and inhumane, and has seriously trampled on the bottom lines of the law, morality and human civilization, said Yang Guang, the spokesperson for the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council.
Yang said violence shall not be allowed to wreak havoc in Hong Kong and the conspiracies of the anti-China disruptors in Hong Kong shall not succeed.
"We firmly support the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government, police and law-enforcing organs in taking more powerful, resolute and effective actions to punish illegal and criminal activities, end violence and chaos and restore order, protect the lives and properties of Hong Kong residents and give stability and peace back to Hong Kong and its residents," he said.
