Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun stated that Hong Kong is a community governed by the rule of law and that the central government firmly supports the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) in protecting national security in accordance with the law and punishing crimes that threaten national security.
China expresses strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition to the blatant slander and defamation of Hong Kong's judiciary by some countries. The judicial authorities of the HKSAR perform their duties in accordance with the law, protect the authority of the law and defend national security, which is reasonable and legal and cannot be commented on. The related court case is simply an internal matter of the HKSAR.
„We call on certain countries to respect China's sovereignty, the rule of law in Hong Kong, refrain from making irresponsible comments on judicial proceedings in the HKSAR, and not interfere in Hong Kong's judiciary or China's internal affairs in any form.“ Guo Jiakun said.
On the 15th, the Court of First Instance of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Supreme Court ruled that Jimmy Lai and three companies associated with Apple Daily are charged with a total of three criminal offences threatening national security, including „conspiracy to collude with foreign countries or foreign forces to endanger national security“ and „conspiracy to publish, publish, sell, offer for sale, distribute, display and/or reproduce seditious publications“.
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