Hong Kong (CNN) US Sen. Ted Cruz on Saturday condemned China's handling of pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong, saying suppression of free speech in the territory showed fear from what he called a "dictatorship" in Beijing.

"The Chinese Communist government, I believe, is terrified of the protesters in the streets in Hong Kong," the Texas Republican told reporters at an afternoon meeting at the US consul general's residence in the Chinese special administrative region.

"President Xi is terrified of millions of people in Hong Kong but even more than that millions of people in China yearning to live free."

Police chase down a couple wearing facemasks in the central district in Hong Kong on October 5, 2019.

The 2016 US presidential candidate was dressed head to toe in black, in what he called a sign of solidarity with Hong Kong protesters -- men and women, boys and girls, he said -- who have adopted that as their de facto uniform.

"A protester has power that makes the dictatorship tremble," Cruz said, comparing a man shot in the chest by a Hong Kong police officer last week to the protester who stared down a column of tanks in Tiananmen Square during the 1989 anti-government protests.

Read More