The Washington Post
The Washington Post“The reality for the Hong Kong judges now is that they know they can’t go against the central authorities on cases like these,” said Kevin Yam, a former Hong Kong lawyer who is now a research fellow at the Centre for Comparative Constitutional Studies at Melbourne Law School in Australia. “They know if they do, the rulings would be overridden.”
Hong Kong was meant to enjoy a “high-degree” of autonomy from Beijing under the “one country, two systems” framework agreed upon when the territory was handed back to China from the British in 1997. That arrangement was meant to hold until 2047, designed to keep the courts independent and preserve basic rights. Hong Kong authorities and Beijing have maintained such freedoms are still protected in the city, that the defendants were charged without consideration for their political beliefs, and that these matters are China’s internal affairs.
Late stage authoritarian propaganda: insist that something is true generally when the example in front of you clearly contradicts it. It's both strongman tactics (what are you going to do, call me a liar?) and forces the abused to insist that they really are fine.