On Sunday, a pro-democracy activist from Hong Kong was taken inside the grounds of the Chinese consulate in Manchester and assaulted.
A guy was forced into the compound by unidentified males after they emerged from the consulate; however, with the aid of police and other protesters, he was able to flee.
A spokesperson for the consulate claimed that demonstrators had put up a derogatory image of the president of China.
The Foreign Office stated that it was seeking clarification on the event immediately. A police investigation has been started by Greater Manchester Police.
After the event, a protester by the name of Bob told BBC Chinese that “mainlanders”—as opposed to Hong Kong residents—came out of the consulate and tore down their posters.
Following the incident, the audience was still incensed. The British police and the personnel from the consulate were yelled at by protesters who claimed they should have done more.
The demonstrators had previously been requested to shift to the other side of the street by consulate employees.
At the protest, there were just two police officers there, but minutes into the altercation, numerous more joined them.
They gathered at the compound’s entrances to disperse the demonstrators and stop the fighting.
One policeman entered the consulate’s grounds and dragged the man inside back outside.
Then, at least eight guys, some of whom were donning helmets and safety vests, made their way back to the consular structure.
Although the consulate is on British soil, entry is prohibited without permission.
Iain Duncan Smith, a former leader of the Conservative Party, responded on Twitter by saying that the Chinese ambassador should issue a comprehensive apology and that those responsible should be deported to China.
In Britain, there are frequently a few altercations during protests outside embassies and consulates. To maintain the peace, police are frequently present.
However, consular personnel rarely enter the street to remove banners and posters. And much less frequently are demonstrators pulled through the gates and ostensibly assaulted.
Therefore, it is not unexpected that there are mounting requests for James Cleverly, the Foreign Secretary, to call the Chinese ambassador to Britain for an explanation. David Lammy, the foreign policy spokesman for Labour, deemed the alleged attack reprehensible. “Peaceful protest suppression will never be accepted on our streets,” he declared.
The Home Office and police will conduct an initial investigation before deciding whether or not to pursue criminal justice action. The Foreign Office will have to choose whether to respond diplomatically.
In reference to China’s repression of pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong, President Xi Jinping, who is expected to win a third term in office, claimed to have transformed the situation there from “chaos to governance.”
