China names new head of national security office in Hong Kong

China's cabinet appointed Zheng Yanxiong as the director of the mainland's new national security agency in Hong Kong, the official Xinhua news agency said on Friday.

Zheng most recently served as the secretary-general of the Communist Party committee of the southern province of Guangdong. He sparked controversy during a prior posting as the party chief of the southern city of Shanwei over his hard-line stance towards protesters in 2011 at the small village of Wukan who sought compensation for land requisitioned by the government.