HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong lawmakers unanimously approved a new national security law Tuesday, giving the government more powers to crack down on dissent, widely seen as the latest step in a wide-ranging political crackdown sparked by pro-democracy protests in 2019.
The National Assembly adopted the Law on the Protection of National Security at an extraordinary session. The law would expand authorities’ ability to prosecute citizens for crimes including “collusion with foreign powers” to commit illegal acts, as well as charge them with treason, rebellion, espionage and revealing state secrets, among others.
It comes on top of a similar security law imposed by Beijing in 2020 that has already largely silenced opposition voices in the financial hub.
Hong Kong’s Legislative Council full of Beijing loyalists after major elective repair, hastened to have the law approved. From the bill was revealed on March 8, a committee held daily meetings for a week following Hong Kong leader John Lee’s call to push the law “full speed ahead”. After the vote, Lee said the law would take effect Saturday.
“Today is a historic moment for Hong Kong,” he said.
Critics worry the new law will further erode civil liberties that Beijing promised to preserve for 50 years when the former British colony returned to Chinese rule in 1997.
The newly passed law threatens stiff penalties for a wide range of actions that authorities call threats to national security, with the most serious – including treason and rebellion – punishable by life in prison. Lesser crimes, including possession of seditious publications, can also lead to several years in prison. Some provisions allow criminal prosecution for acts committed anywhere in the world.
Legislative Council President Andrew Leung said this morning that he believed all MPs were honored to be involved in this “historic mission”. Board Chairs typically choose not to participate in such votes. However, this time Leung released his ballot to mark the occasion.
John Burns, emeritus professor of politics and public administration at the University of Hong Kong, said the process reflected “the city’s crippled accountability system, weakened by design”.
He said the MPs have gone through the bill in detail and the government has accepted some amendments proposed by the lawmakers. However, Burns said during the debate, many lawmakers have focused on ways to expand the state’s reach in matters of national security and increase penalties for related crimes. He added that the executive was happy to oblige them.
“For those interested in responsible government, the process is disappointing but not surprising given the centrally imposed changes since 2020,” Burns said.
Simon Young, a professor at the University of Hong Kong’s Law School, said the legislature had done more than “rubbish” the law, noting that officials attended lengthy meetings to clarify and amend the bill. But Young said that in the past, lawmakers may have sought the opinion of experts.
“It is unfortunate that this was not done in this case,” he said.
But Beijing’s liaison office in Hong Kong said on Tuesday that the legislation signals that a strong “bulwark” has been built for the city’s stability and prosperity, allowing it to focus on promoting economic development and improving people’s livelihoods. Lee also said other countries have enacted laws to address the risks when necessary.
Hong Kong’s political scene has changed dramatically since mass street protests in 2019 that challenged China’s rule over the semi-autonomous territory and the imposition of Beijing’s National Security Law.
Many leading activists were persecuted, while others sought refuge abroad. Influential pro-democracy media such as Apple Daily and Stand News were shut down. The crackdown sparked an exodus of disillusioned young professionals and middle-class families to the US, UK, Canada and Taiwan.
Hong Kong’s mini-constitution, the Basic Law, requires the city to pass its own national security law. A previous attempt in 2003 sparked a massive street protest that drew half a million people and forced the locally known legislation Art. 23, to be postponed. Such protests against the current bill have been largely absent due to the chilling effect of the existing security law.
The Chinese and Hong Kong governments say the Beijing-imposed law has restored stability since the 2019 protests.
Officials insist the new security law balances security with the protection of rights and freedoms. The city government said it was necessary to prevent a repeat of the protests and that they would only affect an “extremely small minority” of residents.
The new law includes stiff penalties for people convicted of endangering national security for certain crimes if they are found to be working with foreign governments or organizations rather than acting alone. For example, it targets those who damage public infrastructure with the intent to endanger the state and can be jailed for 20 years or, if they conspired with outside forces, for life. In 2019, protesters occupied the Hong Kong airport and vandalized railway stations.
Businessmen and journalists expressed their opinion fears that such a broad law would affect their daily work.
Observers are closely monitoring whether the authorities will expand enforcement to other professional sectors and how this will affect the freedoms of Hong Kong residents.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk was quick to condemn the fast-track adoption of the bill.
“The passage of such important legislation with a significant impact on human rights without a thorough process of deliberation and meaningful consultation is a regressive step for the protection of human rights in Hong Kong,” he said in a statement.
Michael McCaul, chairman of the US House Foreign Affairs Committee, said in a statement that China’s takeover of the city’s “legal, economic and political system makes clear that Hong Kong is no longer a safe place for anyone who believes in democracy, nor a viable place. a place to do global business.”
Last week, a group of four US lawmakers who lead two congressional panels on China called on Secretary of State Anthony Blinken to review travel advisories for Hong Kong, sanction Hong Kong officials responsible for the legislation and strip diplomatic privileges and immunity from the three Hong Kong offices in USA
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Associated Press writer Didi Tang in Washington contributed to this report.
