Joshua Wong barred from contesting local elections in Hong Kong

Hong Kong pro-democracy activist Joshua Wong said on Tuesday that he has been barred from running in district elections.

"I strongly condemn the government for conducting political screening and censorship, depriving me of my political rights," Wong said in a Facebook post.

Last month Wong had appeared before a US Congressional committee on China where he urged authorities to pass legislation to combat human rights abuses in Hong Kong. 

The US House of Representatives later passed the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act which aggravated China as it accused "external forces" of fuelling protests in the Asian financial hub.

Hong Kong has been at the centre of violent pro-democracy demonstrations for the past four months with students clashing with police almost every day, especially on weekends with thousands taking up protests in airports, metro and other important city landmarks.

The protests which began with demands to drop the extradition bill was finally withdrawn by the Hong Kong legislature as unrest escalated in the city.

Chief Executive Carrie Lam had agreed to pull the bill after months of protests which erupted in June, if the bill had been passed, Hong Kong residents could be extradited to mainland China which was seen as an attempt by Beijing to tighten its grip over the city.

However, the move failed to quell the protests as the city continued to see widespread movement against authorities in an endless surge of violence.