Daily Times

Pakistan believes that stability and prosperity in Hong Kong would resume soon, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on Monday.

Commenting on recent series of violent incidents occurred in Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, the spokesperson said, “Pakistan believes that Hong Kong’s affairs are China’s internal affairs. We therefore, understand the measures taken by the central government of China and the Hong Kong SAR government to safeguard national sovereignty and Hong Kong’s prosperity and stability. We also believe that all countries should uphold international law and the basic norm of non-interference in internal affairs of other countries,” the spokesperson added

Meanwhile, according to the China Economic Net, an anti-violence rally themed “Oppose Violence, Save Hong Kong” was organised, in which more than 470,000 people gathered in a rally held at Tamar Park, Admiralty of Hong Kong, to voice out their demand for peace and stability in Hong Kong.

Waving the Chinese national flag and the flag of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) and holding signs written with slogans including “Stop Riots”, “Anti-violence” and “Save Hong Kong”, the crowd was enthusiastic and impassioned despite the rain. They chanted the slogans to express their views.

At the beginning of the rally, a video was played, featuring a recording of a policeman’s wife who spoke, choking back sobs, of how violent protesters stormed the police stations and attacked the police. She appealed to the public to support the police and Hong Kong during this difficult time. “Police, keep it up!”, “Save Hong Kong!” the crowd cried out at the end of the video.

Hong Kong’s opposition and some radical forces have used the pretext of peaceful demonstration to engage in violent protests. Some radicals repeatedly mounted attacks on police. They once surrounded Hong Kong police headquarters, blocked roads and threw corrosive liquids at police officers; ransacked the Legislative Council building and assailed police with toxic chemical powder, resulting severe injuries of police officers. “The common aspiration of the overwhelming majority of people in Hong Kong is that the violence and chaos will stop soon. Our community has been torn apart and can’t afford any more of it,” A finance professional surnamed Lee said while participating the assembly. “We urge the demonstrators and mobs to stop it immediately; otherwise, the whole community has to pay for the consequences.”

Prior to the assembly, Hong Kong citizens had signed a joint statement containing five requirements in a wish to resume unity and safeguard social order. The joint statement, with “Hong Kong has had enough” capitalized, urged citizens to support the HKSAR government and called for the law enforcement to crack down on deeds that fuel violence and chaos and in violation of laws.

The voice of Hong Kong citizens resonated with many more overseas Chinese and peace lovers rallied around the world over the weekend, calling for an end to the violence that has trodden on the law and order of the city in recent weeks. On Saturday, hundreds of Chinese students and overseas Chinese in the United Kingdom gathered at London’s Trafalgar Square to protest the “independence demonstration” in Hong Kong. Demonstrators at London’s landmark square waved Chinese flags, sang the Chinese national anthem and chanted “no violence” and “one nation, one China”.

The demonstrations have also spread to Australia, as students in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide have spilled over onto the streets of cities and university campuses calling for an end to violence in Hong Kong. On Saturday, around 3,000 people who were mobilized through social media marched peacefully through the streets of Sydney.

In German cities of Berlin, Hamburg and Cologne, peace lovers spontaneously held rallies to show their solidarity and support for Hong Kong over the weekend. Calling for peace and non-violence, Chinese demonstrators chanted slogans such as “We love Hong Kong, we love China”.