SHENZHEN, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- Several former world leaders voiced their firm support for the Chinese central government's stance on the situation of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), saying they believed that China has the political wisdom to resolve social disturbance, end violence and restore order in Hong Kong.
While attending the 11th BRICS summit in Brazil last week, Chinese President Xi Jinping stressed the Chinese government's stance on the Hong Kong situation, saying that the most pressing task for Hong Kong at present is to bring violence and chaos to an end and restore order.
Hong Kong has been plagued by chaos since June when a controversy surrounding the now-withdrawn amendment to two ordinances concerning the fugitive transfer agreement morphed into massive violence across the city.
As violence escalated, rioters vandalized shops, attacked police officers, blocked roads, torched mass transit railway stations, trashed universities, forced classes to be suspended and committed horrendous crimes such as stabbing and burning people who disagreed with them.
Taking note of the rampant violent and criminal acts, former leaders of foreign countries supported China's stance on the Hong Kong issue at the Dialogue between the InterAction Council and the China Foundation for International and Strategic Studies held in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen.
"I think that President Xi is right in saying that the violence has to end, and peace and order have to be restored. This is very clear," said Danilo Turk, former president of Slovenia.
"Unrest causes plenty of concerns, and the riots which are seen in Hong Kong have to stop. There is no solution prior to the end of the violence," Turk said.
Echoing Turk's words, Boris Tadic, former president of Serbia, said the violence witnessed in Hong Kong is "terrible and horrible."
As Tadic observed, the escalating violent activities in Hong Kong are causing severe damage to the city's stability and people's livelihood.
Earlier this month, a 57-year-old resident in Hong Kong was brutally beaten up and set ablaze by rioters after he got into a dispute with them over political views.
In another horrendous crime, a 70-year-old sanitation worker was hit by a brick in the head hurled by rioters and later died. It was the first death of an innocent civilian since the unrest began in June.
"I was very shocked when I saw the video. Why attack a 70-year-old man?" Tadic said, adding that "I do not see how rioters declare themselves as fighting for democracy while being violent."
George V. Vassiliou, former president of Cyprus, said that the terroristic behaviors of rioters such as attacking innocent citizens "are unacceptable and have to be addressed as quickly as possible," adding that the violent protests in Hong Kong would not be tolerated in any country in the world.
"You cannot have universities campuses being used as factories for petrol bombs. You cannot have petrol bombs thrown at innocent people," Vassiliou said.
Amid escalating violence, some Western media and politicians turned a blind eye to the savage behavior while accusing the Hong Kong police of using excessive force.
Tadic, however, spoke highly of the performance of the Hong Kong police in fulfilling their duties in bringing violence and chaos to an end.
"What we can witness today is that the Hong Kong police are behaving very calm regarding the violence they are facing. Their reaction is pretty reserved, which is very good," Tadic said. "But what is also very important is to protect the police officers."
"I appreciate the behaviors of the police officers. This is a sign of professionalism," said Moussa Mara, former prime minister of Mali.
Commenting on the "one country, two systems" principle, officials emphasized the importance of the principle for Hong Kong.
"It is an excellent idea, and we have seen how Hong Kong has developed," Vassiliou said. "It is a policy that enables the Chinese people to achieve the best possible."
Turk also said the principle is a very important advantage for Hong Kong.
"I know that people of China are people with great wisdom, and there are ways within the Chinese people and Chinese leadership of restoring peace and resolving the issue in Hong Kong," said Viktor Yushchenko, former president of Ukraine, adding that "China had other challenges and experiences before, but it has always been able to find the way to deal with them in a very wise manner."
"I am confident that China will find a way to deal with the situation in Hong Kong," said Yushchenko.
