HONG KONG, May 16 (Reuters) - Hong Kong's security chief said on Wednesday the government would not bar visitors because of their religious beliefs, but added it would closely monitor the activities of the controversial Falun Gong spiritual movement.
Secretary for Security Regina Ip made the remarks in a statement after Falun Gong followers accused local immigration officials of denying entry last week to almost 100 overseas members of the group, which is legal in the territory but banned in mainland China.
The overseas members had hoped to join protests against Beijing's crackdown on the group during a visit to the territory by Chinese President Jiang Zemin for a business conference.
The tightly-controlled protests were a rare instance of China's leaders being challenged on Chinese soil and were seen as a major test of Hong Kong's freedoms.
China has branded the group -- which espouses an eclectic mix of religions and exercises -- as an evil cult.
Ip met a number of consuls-general this week to address their concerns that their nationals had been denied entry to the territory, the statement said.
"No one was barred from the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region because of their religious belief or affiliation with any group," Ip said in the statement.
The former British colony was promised a high degree of autonomy and wide freedoms since London returned it to Beijing in 1997 as a "special administrative region" of China.
Ip said it was necessary for the authorities to adopt special security measures in the run-up to the business forum to ensure the safety of political and business leaders and other guests.
"Refusal of entry of persons whose presence in Hong Kong is not considered to be in the public interest is part of the overall security strategy," Ip said.
"Our actions taken are fully consistent with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights."
She said 4,800 protesters staged 56 demonstrations, including 15 rallies by some 400 Falun Gong members, ahead of and during the international business forum from May 7 to 10.
"The fact that they were able to display banners and placards expressing their dissatisfaction demonstrated beyond any doubt that the freedom of speech was fully protected and that the principle of "One Country, Two Systems" was fully implemented in Hong Kong," Ip said, referring to the formula giving it special rights after the 1997 handover.
"I want to reiterate that the government will continue to closely monitor the activities of Falun Gong. As a responsible government, we have responsible to protect order and security in society," she told reporters on the sidelines of a legislative council session.
05:55 05-16-01
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