The government on Tuesday urged Amnesty International to issue a "sincere apology" after the human rights group retracted an earlier accusation that a Uyghur man had "disappeared" after arriving in Hong Kong from South Korea.

On Tuesday – four days after initially reporting on the man’s "disappearance" and demanding an explanation from the SAR government – Amnesty International issued a correction reporting that the man concerned had informed the group that he had not travelled to Hong Kong at all.

In a statement, a spokesman for the government expressed "disapproval and outrage" that the group did not apologise for its mistake despite issuing the correction, saying Amnesty had "maliciously smeared" the SAR government with its "unfounded, despicable and fallacious remarks".

"The organisation not only refused to admit its mistakes, but also claimed that it would continue to monitor the human rights situation in Hong Kong and the Mainland, attempting to cover up its mistakes and excuse itself for making the fabricated and malicious remarks that slandered Hong Kong and the Mainland," the statement said.

The spokesman described Amnesty International’s behaviour as despicable, adding that it should issue a sincere apology.