Shanghai: China leveled accusations against Britain on Saturday, alleging “false accusation”, “wanton stigmatization”, and arbitrary arrests following the mysterious death of a man charged with illegally aiding Hong Kong’s foreign intelligence service. The foreign ministry office in Hong Kong released a statement on its website, strongly condemning Britain for what it perceives as baseless accusations against Chinese citizens, impinging on their lawful rights.
According to the statement, Britain’s actions represent “a wanton stigmatization of China and arbitrary arrests and prosecutions of Chinese citizens in the United Kingdom.” Tensions between Beijing and London have been escalating over China’s extensive national security crackdown since 2019, triggered by sometimes violent pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong, a former British colony returned to Beijing’s control in 1997.
Matthew Trickett, 37, a former Royal Marine employed as an immigration officer and private investigator, was discovered dead in a park in west London on Sunday. Trickett had been granted bail alongside Chung Biu Yuen, 63, an office manager at the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in London, and Chi Leung Wai, 38, also known as Peter Wai, who works as a UK Border Force officer.
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The trio faced charges of assisting a foreign intelligence service between December and May by allegedly agreeing to undertake information gathering, surveillance, and acts of deception in Britain. Hong Kong Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Algernon Yau, in a meeting with Britain’s deputy counsel-general, urged Britain to disclose the truth about Trickett’s death, as per Yau’s department on Thursday.
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Yuen and Wai, who have yet to enter pleas, were informed by Judge Jeremy Baker that their trial, anticipated to last five weeks, had been scheduled for February. Their next court appearance is slated for October 25.
