Once a vibrant democracy, and a free, global economy, Hong Kong is on the brink of seeing this progress eviscerated at the hands of the People’s Republic of China. New national security legislation out of Beijing has shattered the city’s hopes for enduring freedom. The first information regarding the new national security law emerged in mid-June 2020, in the midst of a raging worldwide pandemic and ongoing unrest in Hong Kong. Protests had been nearly continuous for the past year, spawned by outrage over a proposed extradition law that would have enabled Hong Kong citizens to be deported to mainland China for trial. China, having been unable to quell the unrest in the city, seemed to have lost patience with the city’s authorities ability to act.
The new law was quickly moved through China’s rubber-stamp National People’s Congress and imposed on Hong Kong by June 30th. There was no consideration for public concerns, and a complete disregard for Hong Kong’s Basic Law, which is effectively the territory’s constitution. According to the Basic Law, Hong Kong was supposed to be governed under ‘one country, two systems,’ meaning part of China, but democratically governed, until 2047.
The national security law is, at its core, meant to enable the Chinese Communist Party to assert its ultimate control over the once-autonomous city, flouting its treaty commitments. The law sets up a new Office for Safeguarding National Security in Hong Kong, with the authority to oversee and direct much of the security apparatus in the city, giving Beijing a direct line of control. The office is not subject to judicial review, and will be immune from Hong Kong law. Most ominously, it is able to take over certain criminal cases deemed beyond the scope of Hong Kong’s judicial system, and will be able to try the cases in mainland China, subject to Chinese, not Hong Kong, law. The office is currently headed by Zheng Yanxiong, a long-time hammer of the Communist Party with experience in crushing dissent, in some cases quite violently.
The new law also gives the chief executive of Hong Kong, currently Carrie Lam, the power to personally appoint judges to preside over particular criminal cases. Given that the chief executive is only allowed to run for and stay in office with the blessing of the Communist Party, this effectively gives Beijing control over important cases tried in Hong Kong,
A new unit will be set up within the Hong Kong police force that will be focused on enforcing the new law. It can recruit officers from outside Hong Kong, which does not bode well given the reputation of mainland Chinese police forces. It will also be able to surveil any Hong Kong citizen at the behest of the chief executive of Hong Kong.
The law is framed in the context of four criminal offenses: subversion, secession, terrorism, and collusion with a foreign entity. While alone these seem like reasonable pillars for any national security legislation, it is the vagueness and the history of China’s application of these terms that is deeply concerning. Subversion and secession includes chanting or holding a sign with the popular slogan, “Liberate Hong Kong, the revolution of our times,” or publishing an article critical of the Chinese Communist Party, just to list a few. The first arrest made in accordance with the new law was a man flying a flag on his motorcycle with the aforementioned slogan. Terrorism includes the damaging of public transport— a charge which would likely encompass any damage occurring during a protest. Collusion with a foreign entity, a favorite charge of Beijing’s, could extend to testifying before the US Congress.
So far, public libraries in Hong Kong have already seen books taken from the shelves by the government, and media outlets are becoming increasingly cautious. Many individuals are taking down previous evidence of their support for the protests or the pro-democracy movement for fear that they will bear the consequences. Freedom in Hong Kong is fast eroding.
To combat Beijing’s newest assault on the free world, many Western nations are taking unprecedented action. The US Congress recently passed a bill aimed at sanctioning officials that are involved in the new law, and legislation is under consideration that would give Hong Kong citizens refugee status. President Trump has also officially ended Hong Kong’s special trade status, which could be a significant blow to China’s economy. This comes shortly after Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s earlier notification that the city was no longer autonomous enough from Beijing to warrant the special status. The United Kingdom recently declared that the over three million Hong Kong citizens that hold British National passports have the ability to come to the UK for an extended period and receive a path to citizenship. Many other nations are following suit, and while these steps are necessary, they are not sufficient.
China’s actions in Hong Kong are, alone, a blatant attack on the freedom, dignity, and humanity of every citizen in the once-autonomous city, but these actions do not come in a vacuum. They come against the backdrop of a bloody Chinese attack on Indian troops on India’s northern border that resulted in 20 Indian soldiers dead. They come in the context of over one million Uighur Muslims being placed in concentration camps in Xinjiang, subject to torture and severe mistreatment. They come together with China’s continued military incursions into the South and East China Sea. They come at a time when the Chinese Communist Party is working to have China overtake the US as the world’s dominant superpower within the next few decades.
The people of Hong Kong, indeed the people of China as a whole, deserve to have the rights and freedoms that the free world so often takes for granted. In the torrent of bad news that is the modern news circle, the crimes perpetrated by Beijing must not be drowned out. Until China is called to account for its behavior, its actions, and their consequences, will only worsen.