A large crowd gathered outside the proposed location of London's new Chinese “Mega Embassy” on Saturday as politicians and protesters expressed concerns that could be used to “control” the opposition .
Over 1,000 people gathered outside Royal Mint Court, the former headquarters of British coin makers, near the Tower of London. The site could soon turn into a Chinese embassy.
China purchased the site and proposed to convert the 2 hectares (5 acres) of land into Europe's largest embassy.
The Tower Hamlets Council has denied planning permission for 2022, citing a range of concerns, including the impact of massive protests on the site. The conservative government refused to intervene.
Beijing resubmitted the application after Labour took power, and the government called for it after Chinese President Xi Jinping raised it directly with Keir Starmer. Cabinet Ministers Yvette Cooper and David Lamy have shown their support for the proposal, and local investigative hearings will begin next week.
The final decision falls on Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary Angela Rayner.
The protest, including many Hong Kong people who sought evacuation in the UK, has raised concerns that the embassy could “control” opponents and use them to illegally detain them.
Caregiver Tai (age 50) said: “We're from Hong Kong. We're afraid that China will use this place to look over us. In Hong Kong, we have a lot of experience with China, the CPP, and dominate freedom and democracy. And to the people of Hong Kong. We are all facing this.”
He expressed concern that the embassy could be used by the Chinese government “to control the people of Hong Kong who live in the UK,” adding that “people are leaving Hong Kong because they are afraid of the CPP.”
Another protester, who named her as a 20-year-old mitochondria, expressed similar concerns. “The building is very likely to be used to arrest Chinese dissidents in British soil in an illegal way,” she said. “Mega Embassy makes it possible to make it happen.”
She held a blue and white Uyghur flag. “The Chinese government has an imperialist interest in occupying the lands of East Turkestan,” she said.
“There is a massacre of the Muslim Uyghur people and Muslims in East Turkestan. They should not be oppressed. This is because we are in the same battle with the same authoritarian government. That's why I'm raising the flag.”
In the middle of the demonstration, officers dragged the woman into a police van. A large group of protesters dressed in black tried to surround the van and stop them from screaming “Let her go.”
Another woman appeared to be feeling sick and was seen lying on a rainy road.
Engineer Fred, 29, expressed concern that the building could be used “to capture and spy people inside the embassy.”
“We are a beacon of freedom in the world. It's a shame to see this beautiful compound, our heritage, our pride falling into the hands of dictators.”
Many well-known politicians also spoke to the protesters, including Iain Duncan Smith, Tom Tugendhat and Labor MP Blair McDougall. Former Security Minister Tugendhat said allowing the embassy to move on would be a “significant mistake.”
“It is a very clear statement that our government chose the wrong side, not for the defense and protection of the British and for the future of our economy, but for the wrong side. ”
He said moving ahead with the plan would send a message to the world that the UK government has “not learned the lessons of the past decade” and “just not hearing them.”
Tugendhat told reporters: You can see the hope and optimism they approached it.
“What would you have the same optimism in 2025? It's not optimistic anymore, it's just intentional ignorance.”
