Hong Kong leader warns against call for freedom from China

Insisting that the government did not want to intervene on university campuses against those who have been flying independence banners, Chief Executive Carrie Lam said the campaign was “organised and systematic” rather than simply an issue of freedom of speech.

“This has already deviated from the so-called ‘why aren’t we able to talk about this?’ point of view. It is clearly attacking ‘one country, two systems’ ... and destroying the relationship between Beijing and Hong Kong,” Lam said. “It is not in the interests of Hong Kong’s development and must stop,” she said. 

Lam said the calls “violated” the Basic Law, the constitutional document that secured Hong Kong’s broad freedoms of speech and assembly.