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WORLD NEWS Friday 20 November 2020

China says 'Five Eyes' should face reality on Hong Kong

BEIJING (AP) — China on The four disqualified law-
Thursday rejected the lat- makers were earlier barred
est attack on its Hong Kong from running for reelection
policy by the U.S. and sev- because of their calls for
eral of its allies, saying they foreign governments to im-
"should face up to the re- pose sanctions on China
ality" that the former British and Hong Kong. They had
colony has been returned remained in office because
to China. elections were postponed
Foreign ministry spokes- for one year.
person Zhao Lijian was re- Three other former pro-de-
sponding to a statement mocracy lawmakers ap-
on Hong Kong issued by peared in court in Hong
the U.S., U.K., Australia, Kong on Thursday, one day
Canada and New Zea- after they were arrested
land, which together make for disrupting the legisla-
up an intelligence partner- ture during debate on a
ship known as the Five Eyes. national anthem bill earlier
"No matter if they have five this year.
eyes or 10 eyes, if they dare The three were joined by
to harm China's sovereign- supporters holding up signs
ty, security and develop- with slogans outside the
ment interests, they should West Kowloon Magistrates'
beware of their eyes being Pro-democracy lawmakers, from second left to right; Eddie Chu, Raymond Chan and Ted Hui Courts.
poked and blinded," he speak outside a local court in Hong Kong Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. Eddie Chu, one of the three,
said at a daily briefing. Associated Press said he is facing "prosecu-
The foreign ministers of the tion from the dictatorship"
five nations said that a paign to silence all critical high degree of autonomy Zhao said Hong Kong is an because of their actions
new Chinese government voices." and freedom of speech. inalienable part of China to try to block passage of
resolution that led to the The joint statement called Hong Kong, a city of 7.5 mil- and that public officials the national anthem ordi-
disqualification of four pro- the resolution a breach of lion people, was promised must "be loyal to the moth- nance. The law criminal-
democracy lawmakers in China's international ob- autonomy over local affairs erland. This is a basic politi- izes insult and abuse of the
Hong Kong appears to be ligations and its commit- for 50 years after its return cal ethic in every country in anthem, the "March of the
"part of a concerted cam- ment to grant Hong Kong a to China in 1997. the world, right?" Volunteers."q

U.N. climate chief: Pledges by big polluters boost Paris hopes

By FRANK JORDANS do the same a decade should be also having even
Associated Press earlier, have drawn cau- more hope."
BERLIN (AP) — The U.N.'s cli- tious optimism from climate But Espinosa cautioned
mate chief says deadlines campaigners. Their hopes against complacency. "I
set by some of the world's were further boosted by don't want to sound like it's
top polluters to end green- Biden's election win earlier a done deal," she said. "We
house gas emissions, along this month and his pledge are still far from there."
with U.S. President-elect to undo President Donald The pandemic brought a
Joe Biden's pledge to take Trump's withdrawal from sudden halt to the U.N.'s
Washington back into the the Paris agreement. carousel of climate meet-
Paris accord, have boost- "These announcements ings, disrupting complex ne-
ed hopes of meeting the are really extraordinary," gotiations on a wide range
pact's ambitious goals. Patricia Espinosa, head of environmental issues and
The agreement signed of the U.N. climate office, forcing the cancellation of
in the French capital five told The Associated Press. the global body's annual
years ago aims to keep "Just a few months ago, I climate summit for the first
global warming well below don't think anybody would time in a quarter century.
2 degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahr- have really predicted that "It has been challenging," In this Saturday, Nov. 11, 2017 file photo, Patricia Espinosa,
executive secretary of the United Nations Framework
enheit) — ideally no more we would see these kinds Espinosa said by video from Convention on Climate Change, smiles in the U.S. Climate
than 1.5 C (2.7 Fahrenheit) of announcements at this her agency's headquarters Action Center during the "AMERICA'S PLEDGE" and "WE ARE STILL
— compared to pre-indus- time. And especially in the in Bonn, Germany, noting IN" campaign at the COP 23 Fiji UN Climate Change Conference
trial times by the end of the middle of the pandemic." how carefully forged re- in Bonn, Germany.
century. Experts say the Espinosa said countries' lationships were suddenly Associated Press
world is far off track and willingness to commit to confined to virtual conver-
that, with average tem- tougher emissions limits sations. "It does not substi- pandemic," Espinosa said, for being willing to adapt,
peratures already up by shows that curbing global tute the in-person contacts, recalling her globe-trotting forgoing some of the plan-
about 1 C (2 Fahrenheit), warming remains a politi- but it works." days as Mexico's top dip- et-warming habits of older
drastic action is needed in cal priority — and that the In some ways, however, lomat from 2006 to 2012 generations such as own-
the next 30 years. target set in Paris is a pos- the coronavirus crisis has that sometimes included ing cars and indulging in
But the recent announce- sibility. proved to be an opportu- two long-distance flights a meat-heavy diets that sci-
ment by China, the world's "Science has told us that nity to change old habits, day. "You cannot continue entists say need to change.
top polluter, that it will we still have a chance to she added. to travel like you used to "This deep transformation is
phase out emissions by achieve it," she said. "Look- "Everybody is clear that we travel." very much going to be driv-
2060, and pledges by Ja- ing at these announce- will not go back to the nor- The 62-year-old praised en by the youth," Espinosa
pan and South Korea to ments, I think that we mal that we had before the young people in particular said.q