BEIJING • China's state media lashed out yesterday at possible retaliatory moves by the US to impose sanctions and end Hong Kong's special status if Beijing were to proceed with a new national security law, as the city braces itself for fresh protests.
The state-backed China Daily said President Donald Trump's pledge to "take action to revoke Hong Kong's preferential treatment as a separate Customs and travel territory", and to impose sanctions on unspecified individuals, would hurt the United States and unite Hong Kong with the mainland.
"China has already prepared for the worst... If Trump's plan continues, Washington will soon run counter to the interests of most Hong Kong people," the state-run Global Times tabloid wrote.
"The extreme tactics of a superpower like the US are nothing less than chronic suicide," it added.
A Hong Kong government spokesman expressed regret that the US continued to "smear and demonise the legitimate rights and duty of our sovereign" to safeguard national security.
Chinese state media also took aim at the US government as many American cities were gripped by raging protests and clashes after the death of an unarmed African American during his arrest by police last week, comparing the unrest with the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong.
Beijing has long been infuriated by criticism from Western capitals, especially Washington, over its handling of the pro-democracy protests that shook Hong Kong last year.
"US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi once called the violent protests in Hong Kong 'a beautiful sight to behold'... US politicians now can enjoy this sight from their own windows," Global Times editor-in-chief Hu Xijin wrote last Saturday.
It was "as if the radical rioters in Hong Kong somehow snuck into the US and created a mess like they did last year", he added.
China has insisted that "foreign forces" are to blame for the turmoil in Hong Kong, where pro-democracy protesters - described by Beijing as rioters - have marched in the millions since June last year and often clashed with the police.
Beijing and Hong Kong officials have justified the planned security law that will be directly imposed by China as a move to restore order to the violence-hit city.
Protesters, however, have said they are railing against China's deep encroachment on Hong Kong's autonomy and freedoms - despite Beijing's promise to grant the city a high degree of autonomy under a so-called "one-country, two systems" formula - since the territory reverted from British to Chinese rule in 1997.
They have said more protests are planned in the coming weeks.
Countries such as the US, Canada and Britain have expressed deep concerns about the security law, with Britain saying that it may grant expanded visa rights to large numbers of Hong Kongers.
Demosisto, the advocacy group led by prominent young Hong Kong democracy activist Joshua Wong, has said the security legislation will be "the death of freedom in Hong Kong".
REUTERS, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
