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Hong Kong extradition bill
Hong KongPolitics

American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong urges Chief Executive Carrie Lam to ‘restore business confidence’ after protests against extradition bill

  • AmCham chief Tara Joseph says Lam must make it clear extradition bill has been dropped
  • On US-China trade war: ‘Instead of becoming a pawn, it should become an exception,’ Joseph says

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Tara Joseph, president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong. “People understand the value of Hong Kong,” she said. Photo: May Tse
Denise Tsang

Hong Kong’s most influential American commerce group has called on Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor to urgently restore business confidence after a bitter dispute over an extradition bill.

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Tara Joseph, president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong (AmCham), said in an interview on Tuesday that Lam needed to make it clear that the polarising bill had been dropped.

She said Hong Kong’s reputation as a global business hub had been damaged as a result of the bill.

Joseph spoke to the Post hours before Lam faced the press and apologised “sincerely to every single Hong Kong citizen” for the government’s poor handling of the bill. Even so, Lam refused to completely withdraw the bill or step down as her opponents had demanded.

Fierce opposition to the bill – and Lam’s previously tough stance on protesters – brought about 2 million demonstrators to the streets on Sunday, while just a week earlier an estimated 1.03 million people protested against the extradition bill. The turnout was historic in the city of 7.4 million.

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