Photo taken on July 14, 2020 shows the Golden Bauhinia Square in south China's Hong Kong. Photo:Xinhua

The Hong Kong regional government on Friday strongly condemned some US lawmakers for trying to intimidate the city's national security defenders, saying these US politicians deliberately ignored the well-being brought by the National Security Law (NSL) for Hong Kong, and calling the so-called sanctions political grandstanding filled with ill intentions.

On Thursday, a bipartisan group of US lawmakers introduced a bill called the Hong Kong Sanctions Act, urging the Biden administration to expand its sanctions list to cover another 49 Hong Kong officials, judges and prosecutors for "human rights violations" under the NSL, South China Morning Post reported.

While the "black-clad violence" and the Hong Kong version of the "color revolution" back in 2019 severely harmed the city's social stability, the successful implementation of the NSL has enabled the Hong Kong community to swiftly resume their livelihoods and economic activities as normal and for the business environment to be restored, said a spokesman for the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) on Friday.

However, these US politicians insisted on turning a blind eye to all these facts, and even clamored for so-called "sanctions" against the people who dutifully safeguard national security, including the Secretary for Justice, the Secretary General of the Committee for Safeguarding National Security of the HKSAR, the Commissioner of Police, and a number of judges and prosecutors, said the spokesperson.

The HKSAR government said it despises any so-called "sanctions" and will never be intimidated. It will continue to resolutely discharge the responsibility of safeguarding national security, urging the US individuals to discern facts from fallacies and immediately stop acting against international law and interfering in China's internal affairs.

The spokesperson pointed out that over the past three years or so since the NSL has been implemented, the judiciary of the HKSAR has exercised judicial power independently in accordance with the law, and everyone charged with a criminal offence has the right to a fair hearing. Cases will never be handled any differently owing to the profession, political beliefs or background of the entities involved.

"Making any statement with the intent of interfering with or obstructing the course of justice, or engaging in conduct with the same intent, is very likely to constitute the offence of criminal contempt of court or the offence of perverting the course of justice," said the HKSAR government.

The HKSAR government said it will prevent, suppress and punish in accordance with the law activities that endanger national security, and at the same time safeguard the rights and freedoms enjoyed by people in Hong Kong to ensure the steadfast and successful implementation of "one country, two systems".

The HKSAR government strongly condemned the US Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC) twice after it proposed imposing sanctions on HKSAR judges and prosecutors, respectively in July 2022 and March 2023.

In 2020 and 2021, the US imposed so-called sanctions on several Chinese mainland and HKSAR officials, as well as a range of law enforcement personnel, but did not sanction judges and prosecutors, VOA reported.

Global Times