The new Beijing-appointed Hong Kong administration revealed on Sunday includes four senior officials under US sanctions that were decried as an attempt to “bully” China by its incoming leader.
After Beijing imposed a sweeping national security law to suppress dissent in the semi-autonomous city following the massive and often violent democracy protests of 2019, the United States hit 11 Beijing and Hong Kong officials with sanctions a year later.
Seven of those 11 were members of the Hong Kong government, and four of them will continue in the new administration, including the newly appointed chief secretary for administration Eric Chan, security minister Chris Tang, mainland affairs minister Erick Tsang and the leader-in-waiting John Lee.
The other three Hong Kong officials the US sanctioned were Secretary for Justice Teresa Cheng, the retired police chief Steven Lo, and the outgoing city leader Carrie Lam who said that due to the banking restrictions imposed within the sanctions framework, she was forced to receive her salary in cash.
Lee, a former security chief who oversaw the crackdown on Hong Kong’s democracy movement, scoffed at the sanctions introducing his new cabinet on Sunday, noting that he paid them no attention.
In a reference to the US, he said that some countries of bullies tried to intimidate Hong Kong officials with sanctions, especially after the measures Hong Kong deployed prevented their plots to sabotage the city’s national security.
Lee stressed that those plots have made them more determined in continuing to discharge their duties of defending national security. Being the sole candidate in the race, he was chosen as the next chief executive in early May by a small committee of Beijing loyalists.
Beijing overhauled Hong Kong’s electoral system in 2021 to prevent anyone deemed unpatriotic to be eligible to run.
The appointment of the new cabinet comes less than two weeks before the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong’s transfer from British to Chinese rule and halfway point of the “One Country, Two Systems” political model.
The same day, on July 1, the new government assumes office.
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