World

Hong Kong deploys massive security as Xi set to swear in new leader

2022.07.01 02:51

5/5
Hong Kong deploys massive security as Xi set to swear in new leader
Chinese President Xi Jinping waves at people welcoming his arrival at the West Kowloon railway station, ahead of the 25th anniversary of the former British colony’s handover to Chinese rule, in Hong Kong, China June 30, 2022. Hong Kong Information Service

2/5

HONG KONG (Reuters) – Authorities deployed a massive security force around Hong Kong on Friday as Chinese President Xi Jinping prepared to swear in the city’s new leader and attend celebrations to mark the 25th anniversary of the former British colony’s handover to Beijing.

Red lanterns and posters declaring a “new era” of stability decorated main roads and walkways close to the harbourfront convention centre where the last colonial governor, Chris Patten, tearfully handed Hong Kong back to China at a rain-drenched ceremony in 1997.

Some analysts see Xi’s visit as a victory tour after Beijing tightened its control of Hong Kong with a sweeping national security law, following mass pro-democracy protests in 2019.

After arriving in Hong Kong on Thursday afternoon, Xi said the city had overcome its challenges and “risen from the ashes”.

Former Hong Kong security chief John Lee, who is sanctioned by the United States over his role in implementing the new national security law, takes charge at a time when the global financial hub is facing an exodus of people and talent amid some of the toughest COVID-19 restrictions in the world.

Xi’s trip to Hong Kong is his first since 2017, when he swore in the city’s first female leader, Carrie Lam, who oversaw some of the territory’s most tumultuous times marked by anti-government protests in 2019 and the COVID epidemic.

Britain returned Hong Kong to Chinese rule on July 1, 1997, under a “one country, two systems” formula which guarantees wide-ranging autonomy and judicial independence not seen in mainland China.

Critics of the government, including Western nations, accuse authorities of trampling on those freedoms, which Beijing and Hong Kong reject.

Source

Related Articles

Leave a Reply

Back to top button
bitcoin
Bitcoin (BTC) $ 63,155.92 0.28%
ethereum
Ethereum (ETH) $ 2,604.90 2.25%
tether
Tether (USDT) $ 1.00 0.03%
bnb
BNB (BNB) $ 583.71 2.49%
solana
Solana (SOL) $ 148.01 1.23%
usd-coin
USDC (USDC) $ 1.00 0.07%
xrp
XRP (XRP) $ 0.599542 2.80%
staked-ether
Lido Staked Ether (STETH) $ 2,603.82 2.24%
dogecoin
Dogecoin (DOGE) $ 0.108381 3.21%
the-open-network
Toncoin (TON) $ 5.68 3.04%
tron
TRON (TRX) $ 0.151967 0.12%
cardano
Cardano (ADA) $ 0.355497 0.62%
avalanche-2
Avalanche (AVAX) $ 27.28 0.25%
wrapped-steth
Wrapped stETH (WSTETH) $ 3,071.62 2.34%
wrapped-bitcoin
Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC) $ 63,049.89 0.26%
shiba-inu
Shiba Inu (SHIB) $ 0.000015 3.22%
weth
WETH (WETH) $ 2,603.10 2.18%
chainlink
Chainlink (LINK) $ 11.39 0.75%
bitcoin-cash
Bitcoin Cash (BCH) $ 343.64 2.66%
polkadot
Polkadot (DOT) $ 4.42 1.67%
dai
Dai (DAI) $ 1.00 0.00%
leo-token
LEO Token (LEO) $ 5.72 1.07%
uniswap
Uniswap (UNI) $ 6.79 0.09%
near
NEAR Protocol (NEAR) $ 4.61 6.05%
litecoin
Litecoin (LTC) $ 67.12 2.79%
wrapped-eeth
Wrapped eETH (WEETH) $ 2,726.01 2.18%
kaspa
Kaspa (KAS) $ 0.169438 0.03%
fetch-ai
Artificial Superintelligence Alliance (FET) $ 1.61 0.93%
aptos
Aptos (APT) $ 7.94 8.24%
internet-computer
Internet Computer (ICP) $ 8.43 0.95%
sui
Sui (SUI) $ 1.46 0.49%
pepe
Pepe (PEPE) $ 0.000008 1.31%
bittensor
Bittensor (TAO) $ 466.49 14.85%
monero
Monero (XMR) $ 176.93 0.80%
first-digital-usd
First Digital USD (FDUSD) $ 0.999654 0.13%
polygon-ecosystem-token
POL (ex-MATIC) (POL) $ 0.406686 1.58%
stellar
Stellar (XLM) $ 0.097624 1.16%
ethereum-classic
Ethereum Classic (ETC) $ 19.25 0.89%
immutable-x
Immutable (IMX) $ 1.61 4.31%
ethena-usde
Ethena USDe (USDE) $ 0.999224 0.02%
blockstack
Stacks (STX) $ 1.72 1.89%
aave
Aave (AAVE) $ 160.04 5.21%
okb
OKB (OKB) $ 39.55 0.12%
crypto-com-chain
Cronos (CRO) $ 0.085862 0.36%
filecoin
Filecoin (FIL) $ 3.81 1.36%
arbitrum
Arbitrum (ARB) $ 0.601554 4.72%
render-token
Render (RENDER) $ 5.52 3.95%
mantle
Mantle (MNT) $ 0.639172 6.22%
optimism
Optimism (OP) $ 1.72 4.07%
injective-protocol
Injective (INJ) $ 20.86 0.42%