British politicians and hundreds of protesters gathered to oppose China’s proposed mega embassy in London as protesters worry about transnational repression and the risk to national security.
Hundreds of people gather in protest outside the Royal Mint Court on Saturday (Jan. 17), the proposed site of a new Chinese mega embassy in London.
The protestors worry about the Chinese plan unveiled last week to expand basement rooms close to highly sensitive fiber optic cables connecting London’s two financial centers.
They also protested about the U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s plans to go to China in the coming days.
Protesters held flags and banners chanting “no mega embassy.”
U.K.’s Conservative party leader, Kemi Badenoch, called for the British government to stop the proposed mega embassy amid serious concerns about the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
“Whether it’s spying, disrupting a lot of our services, issues with trade, the harassment of British nationals with connections to China, the harassment of the people of Hong Kong. There’s so much that we’re concerned about.”
The Telegraph newspaper reported that the plans for the site, located near the touristic Tower of London, include 208 secret rooms and a hidden chamber.
Critics fear the secret basement rooms could be used to detain dissidents who have fled from communist China.
Hong Kong activist Chloe Cheung is based in London and has a HK$1 million (S$165,000) bounty on her head.
Born in Hong Kong, Cheung has been a fierce advocate of democracy in Hong Kong since the implementation of the Hong Kong National Security Law (NSL) by the CCP in 2020. She has been accused of secession and collusion with foreign forces.
Cheung says she fears for her safety.
“Giving China the biggest embassy in Europe is kind of saying that, okay, you can do whatever you want in this country.”
“You can harass people here. You can sanction our MP. We don’t care and we’re going to give you this embassy,” she said. “That is the wrong signal to send to the Chinese Communist Party.”
The propsed site for the Chinese embassy is also located between the financial hubs, the City of London and Canary Wharf.
The proposed hidden chamber would be located in close proximity to data cables, said to be crucial for financial sector communications.
Benedict Rogers, Senior Director of Fortify Rights, a non-profit, non-governmental human rights organisation, said this is deeply concerning.
“You can’t imagine it’s a coincidence that the Chinese apparently are building these rooms right above these cables. It’s been reported that they’re going to tear down a wall that separates the rooms from the cables, presumably so that they can pack into them.”
“And that seems to me an extremely dangerous situation,” he added.
The decision on whether to approve the Chinese embassy plans has been repeatedly pushed back by the U.K. government.
Ministers have promised to make a decision by Jan. 20, ahead of Starmer’s expected visit to China.
Last November, prominent U.S. lawmakers wrote to the British Foreign Secretary urging the U.K. to deny approval.
They said the close proximity to critical communication cables could jeopardize intelligence sharing among the U.K., the U.S. and the other “Five Eyes” partners that include Australia, Canada and New Zealand.
