Danish Foreign Minister Khufuat said the government will defend the freedom of political figures to meet with others.
Danish newspaper Politiken reports that the Hong Kong government is studying the prosecution of two Danish MPs for allegedly helping former legislator Raymond Hui to go into exile in Europe. The report says the Hong Kong government is “pro-China” and plans to extradite the two lawmakers to Hong Kong to stand trial. Politico said the Hong Kong government’s move triggered a diplomatic row between Hong Kong and Denmark; another local media, the Local Denmark, said it was shocking that the Hong Kong government’s pro-China officials were infringing on Denmark’s sovereignty.
The local media reported that the Hong Kong government plans to extradite two members of parliament, Uffe Elbæk of the left-wing Independent Green Party and Katarina Ammitzbøll of the Conservative Party. According to the report, the Hong Kong government accused the two of providing Xu Zhifeng with “false invitations to environmental conferences” and actually “covering up Xu Zhifeng’s intention to go into exile”. Politiken reports that the Hong Kong government has confirmed to Denmark that it is studying various legal options to pursue the Danish MPs.
Danish Foreign Minister Jeppe Kofod told the local media that “Danish politicians are free to decide who they want to meet with without fear of reprisal. The Danish government strongly defends their rights.
The Hong Kong Security Bureau did not confirm the Danish media reports, reiterating that if anyone is involved in organizing, planning or assisting absconding or conspiracy-related criminal offences, the police will investigate and collect evidence, and deal with them in accordance with the facts and evidence, under the legal framework of Hong Kong’s jurisdiction, and in accordance with the law. Secretary for Security Lee Ka Chiu criticized earlier that Johnnie Hui is “a fugitive who has openly abandoned his bail and absconded, saying that if anyone, including foreign politicians, is suspected of committing the crime of organizing, planning or assisting in absconding, the police will actively investigate and pursue legal responsibility under the existing legal framework.
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