Editor's note: The following article is taken from the Chinese-language "Commentaries on International Affairs." The article does not necessarily reflect the views of CGTN.

Chinese President Xi Jinping's latest remarks on the Hong Kong situation offer a clear solution to the issue.

He said that the central government will firmly support the chief executive in leading the government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) to govern in accordance with the law, firmly support its police in strictly enforcing the law, and firmly support its judicial bodies in severely punishing the violent criminals in accordance with the law.

Over the past five months, violent protesters in the HKSAR have paralyzed the city's transport system, vandalized shops, torched public facilities, attacked police officers, turned universities into strongholds, and even stabbed and burned people who disagree with them, committing horrific crimes, threatening lives and trampling on the dignity of others.

Their political aim is to destabilize Hong Kong and contain China's development by forcing the HKSAR government to bow to their demands. What they've done has severely trampled on the rule of law and social order, seriously undermined local prosperity and stability, and critically challenged the bottom line of the principle of "One Country, Two Systems". No country or civilized society will tolerate such savage behaviors. 

As President Xi has pointed out, the most pressing task for Hong Kong at present is to bring violence and chaos to an end and restore order.

The HKSAR government has been fulfilling its obligation in dealing with the radical violence, making great efforts to try to bring the situation under control. The city will have institutional guarantee for restoring order as long as it is committed to having dialogues with representatives from all walks of life in the city, carrying out projects aimed at improving people's livelihoods, comprehensively implementing the "One Country, Two Systems" policy and the Basic Law, and at the same time, continuing to stop violence and punish perpetrators in accordance with the law.

As the key force in maintaining the city's social stability, Hong Kong's police officers have been facing off with the radical rioters as the violence escalates. When fulfilling their duties, they have exercised maximum restraint when the rioters fiercely assaulted them, grabbed their guns, harassed and even issued death threats against their family members. But some local and Western media accused police officers of "abusing their power" while deliberately turning a blind eye to the violence perpetrated by protesters, adopting a double standard on similar protests in their own countries. 

But in spite of the adversity, Hong Kong police have the support of the 1.4 billion Chinese people. The firm support from China's central government will also help boost their morale.

The rule of law is a core value of the Hong Kong society. When breaches of legal norms are not punished, the dignity of legislation will hardly be preserved, and the rule of law will therefore be stuttering. 

No one engaging in violent acts shall be above the law and none of the attempts to trample the rule of law, hamper Hong Kong's prosperity, and challenge the "One Country, Two Systems" principle shall be tolerated. 

At a crucial moment in deciding Hong Kong's fate, all institutions and departments of the HKSAR government need to stick to impartial law enforcement, punish the rioters according to the law, and safeguard the dignity of legislation.

The good news is an increasing number of residents are voluntarily helping clean up the roads that have been barricaded with rubble, face up to the rioters, and offer their support to the police. All these show that more and more Hong Kong residents have come to realize the real intention of the violent protesters to seek their political goals at the expense of their city's prosperity and the well-being of the public. 

As people from all circles of Hong Kong start coming together and stay united against the rioters and their crimes, the day when Hong Kong restores its social order and goes back on track toward a brighter future stands not far.

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