Getting patriots to rule Hong Kong is a core idea of the “one country, two systems” principle, Beijing has said in its first press conference of the annual meeting of top political advisers.

Beijing defended a national security law imposed on the city and its efforts to “perfect Hong Kong’s electoral system.” The moves were to ensure the long-term stability of Hong Kong, spokesperson Guo Weimin said when asked to comment on an earlier remark by Xia Baolong, head of the State Council’s Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office.

Xia said last week that only patriots should be allowed to govern Hong Kong. They should not engage in activities that would endanger national security and sovereignty or attack the central government, he said.

They should love China and not seek foreign sanctions against Hong Kong, he added.

The city is set to see dramatic reforms on its electoral system unveiled over the next few days at a yearly parliamentary session that runs alongside the meetings of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, the top advisory body of China.

Only six Hong Kong and Macao journalists were allowed in the Beijing media center to attend the virtual press conference hosted by Guo.

The “one country, two systems” principle was a compromise made between Britain and China when the former transferred sovereignty of its colony Hong Kong to the Chinese in 1997. It allows the city to maintain its capitalist system and freedoms under the rule of China.

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