China has betrayed the people of Hong Kong so the West should stop kowtowing to Beijing for an illusory great pot of gold, said Mr Chris Patten, the last governor of the previous British colony.
"The Hong Kong people have been betrayed by China," Mr Patten was quoted as saying by The Times newspaper.
Britain has a"moral, economic and legal" duty to stand up for Hong Kong, he said.
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"What we're seeing is a new Chinese dictatorship," Mr Patten said.
"We should stop being fooled that somehow at the end of the all the kowtowing there's this great pot of gold waiting for us. It's always been an illusion."