China’s consul general in Manchester accused of violence against protester, but Beijing blames ‘troublemakers’

Beijing has hit back at demonstrators for “illegally” breaching the Chinese consulate in Manchester, after videos showing a Hong Kong pro-democracy protester being assaulted on the grounds sparked fierce public backlash in the United Kingdom.

“A Hong Kong pro-democracy protester was pulled into Chinese consulate grounds in Manchester on Sunday and beaten up” is how the BBC characterized the incident yesterday, an interpretation that appears to be supported by videos shot from various points of view (1, 2, 3).

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wāng Wénbīn 汪文斌 said on Tuesday at a press briefing that “the troublemakers illegally entered the Chinese Consulate-General in Manchester, endangering the security of the premises,” and that the “violation of the peace and dignity of China’s overseas embassies and consulates will not be tolerated,” Agence France-Presse reports per the Hong Kong Free Press.

The British government summoned China’s charge d’affaires today to explain the incident, following calls from members of the British Parliament for an investigation.

• Greater Manchester Police stated that they are investigating the incident: “It is clear what began as a peaceful protest unexpectedly escalated and our officers acted professionally in response to a hostile and dynamic situation to help the victim and ensure he didn’t come to any further harm,” said Assistant Chief Constable Rob Potts.

The clash was triggered when several men began ripping down some of the protest banners on display outside the consulate, during a demonstration of about 30 to 40 people on the same day that the Chinese Communist Party began its twice-a-decade congress in Beijing.

• Videos of the incident posted online (linked above) show a group of unidentified men emerging from the consulate and assaulting the man before police and other demonstrators intervened to pull him back out. (Though the consulate is technically on U.K. soil, it cannot be entered without consent from Chinese authorities.)
• The slogan “Heaven will destroy the Chinese Communist Party” (天滅中共 tiān miè zhōnggòng) — a slogan often used by Falun Gong, a religious and political group that is banned in China — was written on one of the posters torn down, according to a video posted online.
• Other items on display at the demonstration included flags that read “Hong Kong independence,” and “Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times,” a common slogan during the protest movement in 2019 that has been ruled a secession threat under the Beijing-imposed National Security Law.
• The man who was beaten up, who later identified himself as Bob, gave an interview with British broadcaster Sky News: “I was thinking that I might die inside, because that’s not [a] surprise that they would do that.”

China’s consul general in Manchester, Zhèng Xīyuán 郑曦原, has been accused of being involved in the violence against protesters by a British member of Parliament: “What we saw was the Chinese consul-general then ripping down posters and peaceful protest,” Alicia Kearns told the House of Commons, per the BBC.

• China has not commented on Zheng Xiyuan’s alleged involvement.
• There is a precedent: On August 29, 1967, when China was gripped by the fever of the Cultural Revolution, diplomatic staff at the country’s embassy in London got into a fist and club fight with British police officers. (For more on the London street fight, listen to this Sinica Podcast, see this video via Reuters, or browse this blog post with media clippings).

Meanwhile, General Secretary Xí Jìnpíng 习近平 — the target of “an insulting portrait” displayed by some of the protesters, a consulate spokesperson said per the BBC report — is widely expected to secure a norm-breaking third term as China’s leader as the congress progresses throughout the week.