LONDON: Hundreds of people on Saturday rallied in London against Beijing’s new “mega” embassy, days ahead of a decision on the plan.

Protesters, their faces mostly covered with scarves or masks, chanted “No to Chinese embassy” and waved flags reading “Free Hong Kong. Revolution now”. Others held up placards with slogans such as “MI5 warned. Labour kneeled”, referring to the UK’s domestic intelligence agency and Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s ruling party.

Others read: “CCP (Chinese Communist Party) is watching you. Stop the mega embassy.” China has for several years been trying to relocate its embassy, currently in the British capital’s upmarket Marylebone district, to the sprawling historic site in the shadow of the Tower of London.

The move has sparked fierce opposition from nearby residents, rights groups and critics of China’s ruling Communist Party. The latest protest came ahead of an expected decision this week.

Benedict Rogers, head of the human rights group Hong Kong Watch, said if it got the go-ahead it was “highly likely” that the site “will be used for espionage”, citing the sensitive underground communications cables close to the site.

He said China had already been “carrying out a campaign of transnational repression against different diaspora communities” and other critics and predicted that that would “increase and intensify”.

A protester who gave his name only as Brandon, for fear of reprisals, said the plans raised a “lot of concerns”. The 23-year-old bank employee, originally from Hong Kong but now living near Manchester in northwestern England, said many Hong Kongers had moved to the UK “to avoid authoritarian rule in China”. But they now found there could be an embassy in London serving as an “operations base” for Beijing. “I don’t think it’s good for anyone except the Chinese government,” he said.

Published in Dawn, January 18th, 2026