The announcement issued on the 11th November 2020 highlighted that “the decision by the Chinese government in Beijing to allow the expulsion of pro-democracy politicians from the Legislative Council is yet another example of the democratic backsliding taking place in Hong Kong.”

The statement went on to say, “This further demonstrates that the Communist Party in China is no longer following their international legal commitments to the One Country, Two Systems model set out in the Sino-British Joint Declaration of 1984 ahead of the handover in 1997.”

“In the 2016 Legislative Council elections, pro-Democracy political party candidates won more than 55% of the popular vote and were duly elected to serve as members. These politicians have every right to serve their constituents regardless of their political beliefs. The claim that these politicians are a ‘Threat to national security’ is false and demonstrates the inherent flaws of the ‘National Security’ legislation passed earlier this year.”

The statement concluded: “The ECR Party calls for the Hong Kong government to reverse this un-democratic and disproportionate decision. Equally the ECR Party calls on the European Union to explore the possibility of introducing fresh diplomatic and trade sanctions against the Peoples Republic of China for carrying out these actions.”