The United States comments on the Arrests of Hong Kong Protestors

PRESS STATEMENT

MORGAN ORTAGUS, DEPARTMENT SPOKESPERSON

OCTOBER 3, 2020

We are outraged at the Hong Kong government’s arbitrary arrest of more than 80 people on October 1.  A stable and prosperous Hong Kong depends on honoring the rights of assembly, free speech, and other fundamental freedoms.  By repressing peaceful public opinion, the Hong Kong government once again shows its complicity with the Chinese Communist Party’s evisceration of Hong Kong’s autonomy and freedoms of its people. We deplore the local authorities’ continued use of law enforcement for political purposes, which is contrary to the preservation of the rule of law, and respect for human rights, including the rights to assembly and free expression.  These arrests again underscore Beijing’s complete dismantlement of One Country Two Systems that the PRC promised to uphold.