Statement from Lord Moyne Following the Unjust Conviction of 16 Practitioners in Hong Kong

The fact that the 16 Falun Gong practitioners were found guilty of obstruction in Hong Kong last night has more significance than the fact that these people were not hindering passers-by in any way. It was more than a petty injustice; the prosecution, in what would normally be a trivial case, took the trouble of hiring an eminent barrister from Australia. This case showed that the distinction between Hong Kong and Mainland China agreed in 1997 is a sham. The Hong Kong magistrate, given the alternative of yielding to the Beijing government, or of standing up for the rule of law, decided to give way.

Hong Kong in fact failed this test. It is to be feared that this will be the start of many tragedies as, step by step, Hong Kong is absorbed into the evil system of tyranny under which thousands of religious people are imprisoned, tortured, and sometimes murdered.

The British government has a plain duty to protest because it was with Britain that Beijing concluded the so-called ‘One country-two systems’ agreement, which has now been flouted in the most brazen way.