National security law: Hongkongers tell US Congress it’s the end of ‘one country, two systems’
- Activists tell House Foreign Affairs Committee the new measure means Hong Kong’s days of semi-autonomy are done
- Witnesses are thanked ‘for their courage’ in testifying, ‘given the risk of Chinese retaliation’
Pro-democracy Hong Kong activists on Wednesday risked falling afoul of China’s new sweeping national security law to testify before US lawmakers, offering a dire assessment of the law at a congressional hearing and imploring the US to work with international partners to hold Beijing accountable.
Introduced late on Tuesday evening, the sweeping law criminalises a broad swathe of behaviours under the categories of subversion, secession, terrorism and collusion with foreign powers. It has drawn particular criticism for giving mainland authorities jurisdiction over certain cases, and for its application to individuals outside Hong Kong.
“What’s happening in Hong Kong will soon spill over to the world,” said Brian Leung Kai-ping, a prominent pro-democracy activist who shot to fame for unmasking himself during the occupation of Hong Kong’s Legislative Council last year. “That’s why I believe the United States must hold China accountable for its continuous encroachment of Hong Kong’s autonomy and freedom.”
Along with other witnesses who said the law spelled the end of Hong Kong as a semi-autonomous entity, Leung, a PhD student at the University of Washington, appeared at Wednesday’s hearing via video link.
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Beijing passes national security law for Hong Kong
Leung called on the US to pursue action under the Hong Kong Autonomy Act, a bill that remains in Congress but would require mandatory sanctions against Chinese officials for violating obligations to the city.
