Pompeo Criticizes Beijing, Hong Kong Government Over Use of National Security Law Against Student Activists

Young supporters wait outside the West Kowloon Magistrates Court in Hong Kong on Oct. 29, 2020, after local teenage democracy activist Tony Chung, 19, was charged with secession under the new national security law. Anthony Wallace/AFP via Getty Images

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has condemned Beijing and the Hong Kong government over its recent arrest and detention of three student activists, saying that they should be freed immediately.

“The Beijing-controlled Hong Kong government continues to stifle dissent, repress public opinion, and use law enforcement for political purposes,” Pompeo stated on Oct. 29.