Britain will not ban tear gas exports to Hong Kong, minister tells MPs
Britain announced yesterday that it would not ban exports of tear gas to Hong Kong or revoke export licences to supply the city.
Britain announced yesterday that it would not ban exports of tear gas to Hong Kong or revoke export licences to supply the city.
Business Secretary Vince Cable said the decision was based on Foreign Office advice.
The Hong Kong police used 87 tear gas canisters on September 28 to disperse pro-democracy protesters in Admiralty. The force has bought at least 14,000 rounds of tear gas from Britain in the last three years at a cost of HK$13.8 million.
In a written reply to the chairman of the Committee for Arms Export Controls, Cable said: "The foreign secretary has advised me that the use of tear gas by the Hong Kong police was an 'uncharacteristic response' at an earlier stage of the protests … and was not indicative of a wider pattern of behaviour."
Britain previously set a precedent in banning tear gas exports. After a crackdown on the pro-democracy movement in Bahrain in 2011, Britain revoked licences and permits for arms exports to the Middle East nation, including tear gas canisters.
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William Hague, foreign secretary at the time, said there was "no evidence" that UK-made tear had been used in Bahrain. But in Hong Kong's case the government confirmed it had licensed exports of tear gas to the city.
Andrew Smith of the Campaign Against Arms Trade said: "When the UK sells weapons it not only facilitates the attacks they are used in, it also signals an approval for the governments that are carrying them out."
A spokeswoman for the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills said it would take the Hong Kong disturbances into account in assessing future applications for export licences.
