Beijing has warned Western governments against “playing with fire” a day after their diplomatic missions in Hong Kong took the unprecedented step of lighting candles at their windows to mark the June 4 anniversary of the Tiananmen crackdown.

The vice-chairwoman of the group that organises the annual candlelight vigil to commemorate the event – which was banned by police citing Covid-19 restrictions on mass gatherings – was released on bail on Saturday, while the Chinese foreign ministry’s Hong Kong office condemned the United States, European Union and other Western countries for staging “clumsy political shows” and acts that echoed the “very few anti-China troublemakers destabilising the city”.

An office spokeswoman also accused the West of having a hidden agenda of sowing instability in Hong Kong by using the city to carry out infiltration, subversion and sabotage against China.

Police banned the large-scale candlelight vigil at Victoria Park for the second straight year, but Hongkongers marked the June 4 anniversary by lighting candles and flashing their phone lights in public, or attending church gatherings.

Many took to the streets on Friday evening in scattered protests, playing cat and mouse with police in scenes reminiscent of the 2019 anti-government demonstrations.

The US consulate and the EU office in Hong Kong separately posted photos on social media showing they had lit candles on their premises to commemorate the crackdown on the student-led protests in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square 32 years ago.

The consulate posted a statement by the country’s top diplomat, Anthony Blinken, declaring the pro-democracy protests of 1989 “echoed in the struggle for democracy and freedom in Hong Kong”.

The EU’s Hong Kong office tweeted: “The European Union upholds universal human rights at home and calls for their respect across the world.”

The US consulate marks June 4 with candles in its windows.

The moves sparked a strongly worded response from the foreign ministry’s office, with its spokeswoman accusing the Western countries of hypocritically passing judgment on the internal affairs of others and calling on them to reflect on their own domestic issues, such as a growing wealth gap, ongoing racial discrimination and police violence.

“We again urge the organs of relevant countries in Hong Kong to immediately stop such a futile political farce, stop meddling with Hong Kong affairs and China’s internal affairs at large, and avoid playing with fire,” she said.

The police decision to ban the vigil because of the pandemic won the backing of Tam Yiu-chung, Hong Kong’s sole delegate to China’s top legislative body.

Whether future vigils could take place depended on police, he said, but stressed that the slogan of organiser the Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, which called for an “end to one-party rule”, was problematic.

“It’s an underlying meaning that may probably be inconsistent with the existing law,” Tam said, referring to the national security legislation. But he said whether it would amount to a breach centred on the overall intent and goal.

Residents light candles and flash their phone lights on the streets.

Police, meanwhile, released alliance vice-chairwoman Chow Hang-tung on HK$10,000 (US$1,289) bail after arresting her on Friday morning on suspicion of promoting the banned vigil.

The 36-year-old barrister emerged defiant from Tsuen Wan Police Station on Saturday afternoon and accused the force of arresting her for “speech crime”.

Chow said officers had grilled her over her social media posts and interviews she had given.

“They use all of that not only as evidence but as a way to intimidate me,” she said. “I didn’t even have the chance to get close to Victoria Park before I was arrested.”

She said the way in which police cited her media interviews made her fear it would put an extra burden on journalists in the future when they spoke to opposition figures.

“They are intimidating the press, to let them know that if they cover such sensitive topics, they risk sending [interviewees] to jail,” she said.

Chow, who must report back to the police station in July, said she took responsibility for her comments and urged the press not to worry.

“I will press on with my role until they silence me,” she said.