Carrie Lam accuses US of double standards over riots

Hong Kong

HONG KONG'S leader blasted the US for "double standards" in the way it handles protests after the Trump administration vocally supported sometimes-violent demonstrations in the Asian financial hub.

"Look at how the local governments handle chaos in the US and what stance they took on a similar level of chaos in Hong Kong last year," Chief Executive Carrie Lam said at a weekly news briefing on Tuesday. "They are highly concerned about their national security, while holding different standards for our country, especially over Hong Kong's situation."

Mrs Lam is facing renewed anti-government protests as China's plan to enact sweeping national security legislation over the city fuels public anger. President Donald Trump vowed to revoke some of the city's special trading privileges and impose sanctions against Chinese and Hong Kong officials "directly or indirectly involved" in eroding the city's autonomy.

The US, which has passed bipartisan legislation backing Hong Kong's pro-democracy camp, now finds itself engulfed by widespread unrest of its own, triggered by the death of African-American man George Floyd at the hands of a white police officer in Minneapolis.

Mrs Lam's backers in Beijing have seized the opportunity to needle the Trump administration over the protests in recent days, with Chinese propaganda outlets showing scenes from the US of burning buildings, harsh police responses and demonstrators decrying the government.

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After Mr Trump criticised Hong Kong, Mrs Lam on Tuesday addressed the possibility of US sanctions, saying there was "no justification whatsoever" for any foreign governments to level them on Hong Kong.

"For the time being, I have not seen or heard any details from the US administration," she said. "My stance is to point out to the American government, and any other governments if that arises, is that they will be hurting their own interests in Hong Kong," she added.

Hong Kong authorities announced later on Tuesday that they would extend a ban on gatherings of more than eight people to June 18, after the discovery of a cluster of new coronavirus cases spread within the community. The city has seen relative success in containing the spread of the pandemic, and has slowly returned to a sense of normalcy in recent weeks.

As parts of the world begin reopening after virus-induced closures, Mrs Lam cautioned at her briefing that governments shouldn't take measures that would further undermine the global economy.

Earlier this week, Hong Kong's police for the first time banned people from gathering on June 4 to commemorate the 1989 crackdown on activists in Beijing's Tiananmen Square, a day that has typically been a flashpoint for protests. In anticipation of the order, the organiser said on Sunday that it planned to conduct the event online.

June 4 coincides with the final day that the Hong Kong government had previously sought to enforce the limitations on gatherings. BLOOMBERG