Britain has called on the Chinese government to open dialogue with protesters in Hong Kong while China’s state broadcaster cut an interview with the British ambassador in Beijing.
On the 35th anniversary since the UK and China reached an agreement to return Hong Kong to Chinese control, foreign secretary Dominic Raab said on Thursday that the city was “experiencing its greatest period of turmoil” since the handover.
According to Raab, the only way to guarantee Hong Kong’s future success and stability was by “addressing the legitimate concerns of the people of Hong Kong through meaningful political dialogue”.
Ties between the UK and China have worsened over the last year as Beijing has repeatedly accused the UK of “interfering” in China’s domestic affairs.
On Wednesday, the British embassy in China said it was “disappointed” that China Global Television Network, the international arm of state broadcaster CCTV, had cut an interview it conducted with ambassador Barbara Woodward.
Ashley Rogers, head of communications at the embassy, said the interview had covered a number of issues including Brexit and the protests in Hong Kong. He posted on Twitter that CGTN had decided not to broadcast the interview for “technical reasons”.
Rogers said Woodward did not say anything in the interview that differed from previous statements issued by the UK government. He said the reason it was not broadcast may have been because there were questions on Hong Kong, a topic possibly “considered too sensitive”.
Disappointed that CGTN has decided not to broadcast Liu Xin’s interview with HMA for ‘technical reasons’. It was an engaging discussion on 🇬🇧🇨🇳 relations & viewers would have enjoyed it. This unfortunately highlights the challenges we face working with a tightly controlled media. pic.twitter.com/MlqO1NDg3P
— Ashley Rogers 罗傲轩 (@ash_rogers) December 18, 2019
Over the last seven months of anti-government protests, demonstrators have called on the UK to put pressure on China to uphold the terms of the 1984 Sino-British joint declaration, which promised freedom of expression, an independent judiciary and the rule of law in Hong Kong in a framework known as “one country, two systems”. Under the agreement, Hong Kong was promised 50 years of a “high degree of autonomy”.
On Thursday, Raab called the agreement a “legally binding international treaty that remains in force today”. Beijing has previously described it as a “historical document” that had no practical significance anymore.
