The representative office on the island territory is closed. The Tsai administration welcomed anti-establishment demonstrators from the former British colony. Taiwanese government: The Lam executive has shown its contempt for democracy. In 2020, nearly 11,000 Hong citizens moved to Taiwan.
Hong Kong (AsiaNews / Agencies) - The closure of Hong Kong's representative office in Taiwan is due to the "repeated and gross interference" of the island's authorities in the internal affairs of the former British colony. Hong Kong authorities are referring above all to the welcome offered by Taipei to anti-establishment demonstrators fleeing the semi-autonomous Chinese territory.
Carrie Lam’s government suspended the operations of the City Office in Taipei on May 18. At the time of the announcement, it did not provide any explanation, apart from the clarification that the decision was not linked to the resurgence of the pandemic from Covid-19 in Taiwan.
Hong Kong authorities accuse the Tsai Ing-wen administration of carrying out "provocative" acts. They also argue that Office staff in Taipei have faced threats from Taiwanese "radicals". The Taiwanese government replied that it only offered "humanitarian" aid to Hong Kong citizens fleeing in search of freedom. By interpreting this support as a "provocation", says the Taiwanese leadership, the Hong Kong executive has shown its contempt for democratic values.
Last year, more than 10,800 Hong Kong citizens moved to Taiwan - nearly double the number in 2019. The increase came after the Lam executive passed a draconian national security law in June: Beijing imposed a crack down on the democracy movement. According to several observers, Hong Kong has cut off official relations with Taipei on the orders of the central government, which considers the island a "rebel province".