China has blasted statements by US lawmakers supporting riots in Hong Kong, denouncing them as a “gross” interference in the vast Asian country’s domestic affairs.
Numerous American senators and Congress members, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, have over the past days expressed support for the crippling protests in Hong Kong.
You Wenze, a spokesman for China's ceremonial legislature, on Sunday censured the comments as "a gross violation of the spirit of the rule of law, a blatant double standard and a gross interference in China's internal affairs."
You said Hong Kong's 7.5 million people and the Chinese population as a whole rejected the actions of a "very small group of violent protesters" as well as "any interference of foreign forces."
The condemnation came as tens of thousands of umbrella-toting protesters started marching from a packed park in central Hong Kong, where unrest has become a regular weekend activity over the past couple of months.
While recent rallies have been marked by violent clashes with police, organizers expressed hope that Sunday's assembly would be peaceful.
The Chinese-ruled territory was first hit by protests ten weeks ago, when people took to the streets to protest a proposed bill which would have allowed suspects to be extradited and stand trial in mainland China.
While the proposed bill has been suspended, protests have continued and morphed over time into unruly riots.
Earlier this week, spokesman for the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council Yang Guang said the city had reached a "critical juncture" as rioters started showing signs of 'terrorism.”
Hong Kong has been governed under a “one-country, two-system” model since the city — a former British colony — was returned to China in 1997.