Chris Patten Calls On G7 To 'stand For HK's Freedom'

Hong Kong's last governor, Chris Patten, has called on G7 nations to stand up for Hong Kong’s freedom, describing President Xi Jinping's administration as an “enemy of open societies”.

In an opinion piece in the Financial Times, Patten accused President Xi of instructing party officials to attack every sign of liberal democracy and its values.

He said Beijing is terrified that Legco elections in September may produce a democratic majority, so it has decided to introduce laws that will allow its security ministry to operate in Hong Kong.

“With its well-earned reputation for coercion and torture, it won't be there to sell dim sum,” he wrote.

“We can trust the people of China, like the brave doctors who tried to blow the whistle on the cover-up in the pandemic’s early stages. But we cannot trust Mr Xi’s regime,” the last colonial governor of Hong Kong wrote.

He also warned that “if China destroys the rule of law in Hong Kong it will ruin the city’s chances of continuing to be a great international financial hub”.

Patten said if the G7 fails to take a stand over Hong Kong, in a few years' time, it could stand “politically humiliated and morally compromised”.

The G7 was originally scheduled to meet on June 10 but the summit was pushed back by a couple of weeks due to the coronavirus situation.