U.S. bullying act will never hinder Hong Kong’s prosperity and development

Photo taken on June 29, 2021 shows China's national flags and flags of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) on a street in south China's Hong Kong. (Xinhua/Li Gang)

On July 16 local time, the U.S. government arbitrarily issued the so-called “business advisory”, which smeared the business environment in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), and sanctioned officials of China’s central government in Hong Kong.

The act of the U.S. has seriously violated the international law and basic norms governing international relations, and grossly interfered in Hong Kong affairs and China’s internal affairs at large, vividly revealing the “American bullying” and “American double standards”.

It should be noted that the sanctions and threats against China haven’t frightened, and will never frighten, the Chinese people. China will never give in to coercion, intimidation or pressure, and will certainly counterattack.

The world is well aware that by smearing China and distorting the truth, the U.S. attempts to undermine Hong Kong’s prosperity and stability, endanger China’s national security, and contain China’s development, which is totally arbitrary and unreasonable.

The truth is the historical trend will not be changed by the sanctions and threats of the U.S., which will only end up in failure in front of the ambition, indomitable will, and confidence of all Chinese people.

China has always stood on the right side of history and upheld fairness and justice, no matter what kind of obstacles are along the way.

Just when the U.S. was busy issuing the so-called “business advisory” and imposing sanctions against officials of China’s central government in Hong Kong, Beijing, Hong Kong and Macao held an online symposium marking the first anniversary of enacting the Law on Safeguarding National Security in the HKSAR.

During the symposium, officials stressed that by brutally trampling on the international law, interfering in China’s internal affairs, and imposing meaningless so-called sanctions against China, the U.S. and other Western countries that intend to mislead people about the Law on Safeguarding National Security in the HKSAR will only arouse indignation and contempt among the Chinese people, sound the death toll of anti-China forces that aim to cause chaos in Hong Kong, and be hoist with their own petard.

The U.S. issued the so-called “business advisory” by knitting a bunch of lies, making purely false charges against China. While claiming that a sound business environment can’t live without the rule of law, the U.S. has left no stone unturned to obstruct Hong Kong’s way to improving the rule of law.

It refuses to admit that Hong Kong’s status as an international financial, trade and shipping center has been more stable, the rule of law and its business environment have been sounder, and the society has been more harmonious as the Law on Safeguarding National Security in the HKSAR has been implemented and Hong Kong’s electoral system improved.

The truth of Hong Kong’s business environment is nothing like what depicted by the U.S.

Under the Law on Safeguarding National Security in the HKSAR, the public order of Hong Kong has been restored, the rule of law principle upheld, and its development back on track. Hong Kong residents enjoy lawful rights and freedoms, and foreign investors in Hong Kong have a more secure, stable and predictable business environment. Lawful rights and interests of international stakeholders, including U.S. enterprises stationed in Hong Kong, are better protected.

Last year, the inflow of funds to Hong Kong amounted to $50 billion. The balances of Hong Kong’s banking systems reached new heights repeatedly, and the amount of funds raised through initial public offerings (IPOs) in its stock exchange ranked the second in the world.

Hong Kong was one of the regions attracting the most foreign direct investment in 2020, according to the latest annual world investment report released by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. A report by the International Monetary Fund not long ago reaffirmed Hong Kong’s status as an international financial center.

Numerous facts have proven that both foreign investors and local investors in Hong Kong have become more, not less, confident about Hong Kong’s business environment.

The confidence also comes from China’s robust economic growth. Investors are getting to know that exploring Hong Kong market will help them grasp the huge opportunities in the Chinese mainland.

The enacting and implementation of the Law on Safeguarding National Security in the HKSAR has fundamentally closed the loopholes in Hong Kong’s system of protecting national security, blocked the “black hands” in Hong Kong and the U.S. that aim to undermine China’s national security, and effectively protected the constitutional order of Hong Kong established by the Constitution of China and the Hong Kong Basic Law.

It can never be emphasized too much that whatever means the U.S. adopts, it will never reproduce the old days in Hong Kong when it was roiled by rampant black violence, pro-independence movement and “mutual destruction” activities, nor hinder Hong Kong’s prosperity and development. After all, the wheels of history will only move forward.

(Zhong Sheng is a pen name often used by People's Daily to express its views on foreign policy.)