The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government today strongly deplored and opposed the biased comments in the report published by the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Hong Kong of the UK on August 4.

In a statement, it said that matters of the Hong Kong SAR remain China's internal affairs. No other state has the right to intervene under any pretext.

It pointed out that the group does not represent the UK Parliament and comments in the report come from information tendered by allegedly unnamed or anonymous people, adding that there is no actual evidence concerning the reasons for imposing the so-called sanctions against Hong Kong.

The Government stated that Police have the statutory duty to take lawful measures to apprehend all people whom it is lawful to apprehend and for whose apprehension sufficient grounds exist. They also attach great importance to the safety of all people at the scene of public order events and will not obstruct any bona fide rescue work.

But there is a need for Police to be prudent in verifying the qualifications of self-claimed first-aiders, given the situation in some of the unlawful public order events since June last year.

The Government stressed that the international community should take an objective view on the social incidents that have happened in Hong Kong in the past year.

When facing serious unlawful acts, Police have the statutory duty to take lawful measures to maintain public order and safety. The stringent guidelines on the use of force are consistent with international human rights norms and standards.

The Government also explained that the enactment of the National Security Law is absolutely rational, reasonable, constitutional and lawful.

It added that some UK politicians had made the law’s enactment an issue, neglecting the fact that the UK has also put in place relevant legislation and enforcement mechanisms for safeguarding its national security and sovereignty. They also ignored the serious unlawful acts of rioters in Hong Kong, while indicating that certain measures or acts targeting Hong Kong would be adopted.

The Government urged other countries to stop all political manipulation and interference.