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Warship of the People's Liberation Army in Hong Kong (archive image)
Photo: POOL / REUTERS
The government in Beijing may take even tougher measures in Hong Kong in the future.
Former head of the Chinese paramilitary forces, Peng Jingtang, has been appointed as the new commander of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) in the Special Administrative Region.
The state television broadcaster CCTV reported on Sunday, citing a spokesman for the PLA.
He will follow orders from the ruling Communist Party and Chinese head of state Xi Jinping and resolutely defend national sovereignty and security interests, the report quotes Peng.
According to the state newspaper "Global Times", Peng was previously the chief of staff of the police in Xinjiang.
The US government accuses China of genocide in the predominantly Uyghur-inhabited province, which is said to also have camps for forced labor and re-education.
China denies abuses in Xinjiang.
Peng's job in Hong Kong is now to ensure "stability" in the metropolis and to take care of national security issues, the pro-government "Global Times" quoted a military expert as saying.
According to the newspaper, Peng said he wanted to implement the principle of "one country, two systems". The principle states that Hong Kong should actually be governed independently. Since Beijing passed the so-called Security Act, which previously made legal demands for more democracy and self-determination in the Special Administrative Region a criminal offense, many have only talked about "one country, one system".
In Hong Kong, Beijing has been cracking down on the democracy movement for months, and opposition activists have been arrested or silenced.
Hong Kong's Beijing-controlled government is also taking a tough line against the independent press. After raids and arrests, the news portal “Stand News” recently ceased operations.
Several memorials commemorating the victims of the Tiananmen massacre were also recently dismantled.
Beijing wants to erase the memory of the democracy movement in 1989.
fek / Reuters