US, Britain and EU voice objections to Hong Kong’s disqualification of opposition district councillors
- Statements respond to Hong Kong home affairs office unseating 16 more councillors because of invalid loyalty oaths, raising the total to 55
- The ‘arbitrary’ disqualifications ‘prevent people in Hong Kong from participating meaningfully in their own governance’, US State Department spokesman says
The United States, Britain and the European Union accused the Hong Kong government of stripping Hongkongers’ democratic rights on Thursday, following further disqualifications of opposition district councillors for allegedly insufficient loyalty to the city.
Earlier on Thursday, Hong Kong’s home affairs chief announced that 16 district councillors would be ousted from their positions because of invalid oaths, bringing the total number of recently unseated municipal-level politicians to 55.
“These retroactive and targeted disqualifications, based on the Hong Kong authorities’ arbitrary determination that these district councillors’ loyalty oaths are invalid, prevent people in Hong Kong from participating meaningfully in their own governance,” US State Department spokesman Ned Price said.
Following Beijing’s imposition of a sweeping national security law on Hong Kong last year, the requirement that those in public office pledge allegiance to the city was extended from top officials, lawmakers, and judges to officers of all levels, including district councillors.
“The oath-taker must sincerely believe in and strictly abide by the relevant oath prescribed by law,” the city’s Home Affairs Bureau said on Thursday. “An oath-taker who makes a false oath or who, after taking the oath, engages in conduct in breach of the oath shall bear legal responsibility in accordance with the law.”
