Hong Kong Freedom Committee Chairman Guo Minghan: The British side should require senior officials to meet with Jimmy Lai to end solitary confinement

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James Cunningham, chairman of the Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong Foundation who once served as the U.S. Consul General in Hong Kong, visited the UK. He paid special attention to Jimmy Lai, the founder of Next Media, who was about to testify in court, and hoped to promote the British The Labor government has taken concrete action on the situation in Hong Kong. At the same time, Catherine West, Parliamentary Undersecretary of the British Foreign Office (also translated as Wei Qianting), is visiting Hong Kong. She said that the trade between the two sides is mutually beneficial and she is also concerned about Hong Kong’s rights and freedoms.

Guo Minghan attended events in the UK for several days and accepted interviews with many media before the end of his trip on Friday. He told Voice of America that he welcomed British Prime Minister Keir Starmer (also translated as Shi Jixian) who pointed out that Li Zhiying’s case and Hong Kong issues were his fault. British Foreign Minister David Lammy (also translated as Lam Dewei) visited China last month to express the same position and met with Li Zhiying’s son Lai Chongen.

Guo Minghan said that he had met with some officials in the UK and encouraged them to turn their statements into concrete actions and start serious discussions with the Chinese government to resolve this issue.

He said: “Because of the Sino-British Joint Declaration to which China has committed on the transfer of sovereignty, the British government has formal responsibility for the future of Hong Kong, and China’s implementation of the National Security Law is violating the Joint Declaration.”

The British side should ask senior officials to meet with Jimmy Lai end solitary confinement

Guo Minghan proposed that the British side can take two actions. First, the British Prime Minister should make it clear that he not only wants consular visits to Jimmy Lai, a British citizen, but also wants high-level officials such as the Foreign Secretary to visit Li Zhiying. He pointed out that the Hong Kong side has repeatedly rejected the British side’s request for consular visits, so it needs to make higher-level political demands.

Second, the British government should demand an end to Jimmy Lai’s solitary confinement, because he has been in solitary confinement for nearly four years, most of the time. Guo Minghan said that this was not only a violation of international law, but also a “barbaric treatment of a 76-year-old man.” He criticized it as almost a “hostage-taking” situation.

During the opening statement of Jimmy Lai’s case, the Hong Kong prosecution once pointed out that Guo Minghan was one of the “conspirators”.

British diplomats visit Hong Kong and point to trade reciprocity focus on freedom

At the same time, Parliamentary Undersecretary of the British Foreign Office West was visiting Hong Kong. She pointed out on the social platform X on Friday that the UK is committed to having pragmatic and consistent contacts with China, including Hong Kong, which has a deep and common history with the UK.

She said that Hong Kong is an important trading partner and the UK is committed to maintaining Hong Kong’s status as an international city. She also pointed out that cooperation should and can bring huge mutual benefits to both sides.

West pointed out that the rights and freedoms of Hong Kong have been eroded under the “Hong Kong National Security Law” and the UK is concerned. The UK has regular and candid exchanges with Hong Kong and continues to listen to different voices. This is the UK’s concern for Hong Kong and its citizens. responsibility. She also said that the case of Jimmy Lai was mentioned in the talks and the UK would continue to request consular access and call for his release.

Financial summit held during Hong Kong trial

Hong Kong will hold the International Financial Leaders Investment Summit from November 18th to 20th, and the 47 people involved in the Hong Kong pro-democracy primary election will be sentenced on the 19th, and Jimmy Lai’s trial will continue on the 20th.

Guo Minghan said that Hong Kong’s choice to hold events on these days is an “eyesore” and “insulting” behavior. He said that there are problems in Hong Kong’s economy and the Hong Kong government is trying to deceive the business community and underestimate the dangers of doing business in Hong Kong.

He said: “I understand why Hong Kong is doing this. They want to create the illusion that it is business as usual. Who cares about these trials? We care about these trials.”

Witnessed Hong Kong’s optimistic period Feeling that Hong Kong is a tragedy

Guo Minghan said that when he served as the U.S. Consul General in Hong Kong from 2005 to 2008, it was an optimistic period, when Hong Kong was the freest city in China. He said that he had a deep friendship with Jimmy Lai and his family, which made him saddened by the “tragedy of Hong Kong.”

He pointed out that at that time, Hong Kong had hopes and fears, hoping to find a way for China and Hong Kong to progress and develop together during the “fifty-year” commitment period, and the 2008 Beijing Olympics was also part of this idea. Hong Kong plays a key role in attracting foreign investment to China and sharing its culture with the Western world.

“Unfortunately, this is not Xi Jinping’s vision for China or Hong Kong,” he said.

Guo Minghan pointed out that after Xi Jinping came to power, he challenged international conventions, demonstrated power in the South China Sea, strengthened control over the Chinese, and overthrew one country, two systems. All of these indicated that he believed that the existing international arrangements were only beneficial to Western countries, but the United States has only become clear in recent years. Get the full picture of the problem.

Working with both parties in the United States Understand the nature of China’s challenges

However, Guo Minghan pointed out that after this, the United States began to revise its relationship with China. He said that there is not much difference in the overall concept of how to develop U.S.-China relations between the Biden administration and the previous Trump administration. He also said that his foundation has a good cooperative relationship with the Biden administration and the U.S. Congress to promote participation in Bipartisanship in the House of Representatives on Hong Kong and China.

He said: “We will have friends in the new government. The future Secretary of State and Senator Marco Rubio has always strongly supported Hong Kong’s democracy and freedom. He has also been actively participating in Washington’s discussions on the United States’ promotion of protecting Hong Kong’s freedoms and the release of political prisoners. discussion.”

Guo Minghan also said that he hopes that both Washington and London can recognize the nature of China’s challenge.

He said: “There is now a widespread understanding in different countries. Different countries will respond in different ways, and European, British and Asian countries have all reached a similar consensus. They need to have a cooperative relationship with China, but at the same time We also face the fundamental challenges of China.”