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Jardines voices support for Hong Kong national security law

蘋果日報 2020/06/04 11:59


British conglomerate Jardine Matheson Holdings expressed support for the national security law imposed on Hong Kong, following the attack on HSBC by China’s mouthpiece People’s Daily.

Jardines’ statement came in the form of full-page advertisements in Hong Kong pro-Beijing newspapers Tai Kung Pao and Wen Wei Po. The statement was in contrast with an opinion piece by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson in the South China Morning Post. In the article, published on Wednesday, Johnson said the new law would “curtail [Hong Kong’s] freedoms and dramatically erode its autonomy.”

In its advertisement, Jardines said national security legislation was very important and could ensure continued investment in Hong Kong.

“The Jardines Group has roots in Hong Kong and will continue to invest. Its promise to Hong Kong has never changed,” it said.

Jardines’ move came after Beijing’s mouthpiece People’s Daily took to WeChat on Tuesday to criticise HSBC for not declaring its position on the legislation.

On Wednesday, the bank posted on its official WeChat account that Asia Pacific Chief Executive Peter Wong had signed a petition backing the law. The bank “respects and supports all laws that stabilize Hong Kong's social order,” the post said.

Jardine Matheson was founded as a tea and opium trader in 1832. It is one of Hong Kong’s oldest British trading houses, with businesses ranging from real estate to supermarkets. Despite its British heritage, 58% of the group’s profit comes from mainland China, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan.

According to documents from Britain’s National Archives, China blocked state-owned companies from conducting business with Jardines in 1993 because it supported the democratic reform introduced by Hong Kong’s last governor, Chris Patten.
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