China’s ‘disrespectful’ response to Coronation invite

China’s vice president, the man behind the brutal crackdown in Hong Kong, is expected to attend King Charles’ coronation in place of President, Xi Jinping.

Today it was revealed that President, Xi Jinping will not attend the forthcoming coronation, but in a controversial decision is expected to send vice president, Han Zheng, who used a brutal zero-tolerance approach to the 2019 pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong, according to The Daily Express, Thursday, April 27.

Critics are interpreting the decision as a deliberately provocative move, as China’s Han Zheng was behind the heavy-handed tactics used by Chinese authorities to silence the protests in Hong Kong.

When Hong Kong was handed back to China in 1997, an international treaty was agreed between the UK and China, which was supposed to guarantee democratic freedom for Hong Kong for 70 years.

At the height of the protests, which China called ‘extreme and destructive,’ campaigners for democracy were arrested in their thousands, many sustained injuries and in some extreme cases, shot and killed.

Regarding the decision by China, Sir Iain Duncan Smith commented, ‘Xi has no regard for us, he considers us weak.’

He added, ‘This is the man responsible for trashing the international treaty, the Sino-British accord, in the course of which the Hong Kong authorities have persecuted peaceful democracy campaigners. Having this man here given his role is outrageous.’

Countries with which the UK has diplomatic relations have been invited to send representatives to the Coronation, with two notable exceptions, Russia and North Korea.

Despite invitations being sent to leaders around the world, many delegate high-ranking officials to represent them. Britain’s Foreign Office has indicated that they are ‘pretty certain’ Mr Han will be attending the Coronation in place of Mr X.

Last year, China’s then-vice president Wang Qishan attended the funeral of Queen Elizabeth in place of President Xi.

Simon Clarke, the former housing secretary, said, ‘Han Zheng, who has led the extinguishing of civil liberties in Hong Kong, ought not to be welcome at the Coronation.’