Legislative Council of Hong Kong (LegCo) Photo: VCG

In a joint statement released on Monday, foreign ministers of the Five Eyes alliance countries, headed by the US, harshly criticized the Hong Kong Legislative Council (LegCo) elections that just took place. They falsely claim that the democratic elements of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region's (HKSAR) electoral system have been eroded and they complain loudly about the imprisonment of criminals who had violated the national security law for Hong Kong. These LegCo elections were very smooth but the Five Eyes alliance was quite disappointed. Therefore, it uttered these malicious clichés when Hong Kong is enjoying a happy moment. 

The 90 newly elected LegCo members all have passed the qualification reviews which requires candidates to love the country and love Hong Kong. They take serving and better building Hong Kong as their mission. The LegCo will never see the astonishing chaos it had before when some lawmakers, like hooligans, specially acted against the HKSAR government, destroyed Hong Kong's constitutional order and impaired the city's prosperity and stability. During the radical anti-extradition bill protests, they betrayed Hong Kong and became the agents of some foreign countries. But now, all the tools that the Five Eyes alliance used in Hong Kong have been cut off, which is certainly a threat to their shared wishes. For the Five Eyes alliance, the so-called good democracy probably means that their agents in Hong Kong can act unscrupulously and will not face any restrictions, even if they engage in anti-China activities that disrupt order in HKSAR.  

Voters line up outside a polling station at Whampoa in Hong Kong to cast their votes for the Legislative Council, the first election since the city implemented the electoral reform that ensures only patriots govern Hong Kong. Photo: Xinhua

Seeing that its attempts have failed, the Five Eyes alliance issued a statement to satirize the Hong Kong LegCo elections by saying they are of the "same color." Are they all colorblind? During these elections, many people with different political propositions were nominated, some of whom were successfully elected. The composition of the newly elected members is more representative than the previous generation. In addition to entrepreneurs and professionals, there are also representatives of grass-roots workers. It is appropriate to describe them as colorful elections.

Although the US and the West, represented by the Five Eyes alliance, have gone all out to attack Hong Kong's new electoral system, its citizens still have a high degree of trust and support for it. Within one day, 1.35 million Hong Kong citizens took to the streets to cast a sacred vote. Can't the Five Eyes see all these facts? With 1.35 million votes, the public opinion they represent cannot be failed, let alone be degraded.

The Five Eyes alliance has repeated its cliché by referring to the Sino-British Joint Declaration. The US and the West have always brought up the Sino-British Joint Declaration when interfering in Hong Kong affairs. This is completely untenable in legal terms. In fact, the so-called rights and freedoms guaranteed by the Sino-British agreement are false propositions. This document only made arrangements for the transitional period of Hong Kong's return to the motherland. In other words, after Hong Kong's return, the Sino-British Joint Declaration has become a historical document in the database of China. It does not have any practical significance. But the US and the West still regard it as a legal document to restrict China. How arrogant could they be to have such an illusion?

China's State Council Information Office on Monday issued a white paper entitled "Hong Kong: Democratic Progress Under the Framework of One Country, Two Systems." The white paper presents a comprehensive review of the origins and development of democracy in the HKSAR and points out detailed facts and conclusive evidence that, under British colonial rule, there was no democracy in Hong Kong, and the UK had ulterior motives for its rapid promotion of a "political reform" at the end of its colonial rule. The forces that oppose China and mess up Hong Kong, and the hostile external forces behind them are the chief culprits hindering the development of democracy in the HKSAR. The reason why the democratic development of the HKSAR is so difficult is because the local forces that oppose China and mess up Hong Kong are the saboteurs standing in the foreground, while the external hostile forces are the manipulators behind the scenes. 

Under the instigation and leadership of the US, the Five Eyes alliance has become the most anti-China organization in the West. In recent years, as long as unified actions were launched by the Five Eyes alliance, they were always aimed at attacking and smearing China. That tone has never changed. We can make this judgment: In dealing with Hong Kong-related affairs, whatever the Five Eyes alliance opposes is just what is needed for Hong Kong's prosperity; what the Five Eyes supports mostly usually hides its evil intentions of opposing China and messing up Hong Kong. In this sense, the Five Eyes alliance having issued a condemning statement at this moment just shows that Hong Kong has done the right thing.