The commissioner also reported that radical forces have intensified in the city.
Hong Kong Police Commissioner Chris Tan on Monday expressed his full support for Beijing’s initiative to draft and pass a national security law in this special administrative region of China, where new riots were suppressed on Sunday.
Radical forces have intensified in the city, he said. “Since last June, when mass violent protests erupted, 14 cases of explosives have been recorded and five cases of confiscation of firearms and ammunition. The seized explosives were similar to those normally used in terrorist attacks abroad,” said the police chief.
Radical elements detonated improvised bombs in a public hospital and on public transport, he said. “Faced with massive unrest and the activities of extreme separatist forces advocating Hong Kong’s ‘independence’, police realized that Hong Kong is facing a threat to national security and that effective measures must be taken to prevent a worsening of the situation”, – said Chris Thant.
The new law, he said, will help fight separatist forces and restore social order. “The police fully support this decision and will carry out their duties to maintain national security and stability in Hong Kong,” the Commissioner said.
On Sunday, law enforcement officers used tear gas to disperse hundreds of protesters who after months of silence again took to the streets and tried to provoke unrest. A total of 180 people were detained.
In June 2019, unrest erupted in Hong Kong over the intention of local authorities to pass an extradition bill allowing for the extradition of offenders to mainland China. Despite the withdrawal of the legislative initiative, opposition supporters continued anti-Government demonstrations, which lasted until mid-November and were accompanied by road blockades, violence, arson and vandalism.