מחאת ענק בלונדון בעקבות ניסיון להקים שגרירות-על סינית

Thousands gathered in London on Saturday to oppose plans for a Chinese mega embassy. This would become China's biggest diplomatic outpost in Europe and is located not far from the financial heart of London. Protesters warn of the threat from spying and transnational repression. NTD's international correspondent Malcolm Hudson was at the protest. I'm here outside the proposed site for Chinese super embassy in London. Four British politicians and thousands of people from around 30 diaspora groups have come here from across the whole country to oppose the plans and show that this site is not suitable or safe to accommodate protests of this size both now and going on into the future. Among the thousands include Hong Kongers and Chinese, Tibetan, Taiwanese and Uyghurs as well as local residents. Holding placards saying CCP is watching you, stop the mega embassy. The historic site used to be the site for the United Kingdom's official maker of British coins, Royal Mint. It's 10 times bigger than China's current London embassy and almost twice the size of China's facility in Washington. Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick warned of the risk to British national security. We are not going to give this great building behind us to the Communist Party of China. No, it's the wrong site, the wrong process and it's wrong for our national security. The proposed embassy could be used as a base for Chinese interference. Former security minister Tom Tugendhat warned of the impact for those already living on British soil. The reality is we're already seeing transnational repression conducted here by the Chinese state. We're seeing Hong Kongers and Chinese students who are being threatened and silenced here in the United Kingdom. We need to make sure they're able to express their views freely and enjoy the freedom that anybody else in the UK should have. More than this though, former Conservative Party leader Ian Duncan Smith said Britain's security services have objected to the embassy plans. For good reasons, the cables that run back and forth to Canary Wharf, the City of London, also down the road to government, all of that is vitally important. This is not the place you put an embassy and it's certainly not the place you put an embassy which is the representative of a government that is brutal, genocidal and is a threat to Western democracy. China bought Royal Mint Court in 2018. The embassy plans were rejected twice by the local council in 2022 and last month. The Metropolitan Police also objected over concerns there was not enough space for large protests. It said protests would seriously impact traffic at a major road junction in the city. But it dropped its opposition last month after the UK's central government took over the embassy planning application at Beijing's request. Britain's new Labour government has been seeking to forge closer trade ties with China and that's worrying protesters. Human rights cannot be traded off for a short-term gain for economic benefit. A regime that is capable of committing genocide and crimes against humanity shouldn't have a place in the heart of London. A public inquiry led by the planning inspectorate begins on Tuesday. After it concludes, the final decision of the embassy plan rests with Housing Secretary and Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner. Malcolm Hudson, NTD News, London.