Activists plan to vote for ‘Hong Kong parliament’ abroad amid questions about its legitimacy
- Overseas-based Hongkongers hope body will unite growing diaspora and lobby foreign governments
- Government will deal with anyone who breaks national security law regardless of where they are, security bureau spokesman warns
A group of former legislators, scholars and professionals based overseas is planning to host an election for a “Hong Kong parliament” abroad to lobby governments, although some question its legitimacy and representativeness, with people in the city facing a possible legal backlash for voting or running.
The Hong Kong Electoral Organising Committee, launched in Toronto, Canada, on Wednesday, also aims to unite a growing diaspora from the city, while providing those who remain in their hometown an alternative to the Legislative Council elections, revamped by Beijing last year to ensure “patriots” rule.
“The elected representatives can legitimately represent Hongkongers to communicate with foreign government branches,” committee member and activist Baggio Sixtus Leung Chung-hang, who is wanted by the Hong Kong authorities, said before the launch from the United States, where he is seeking asylum.
While a Hong Kong Security Bureau spokesman said it would not comment on individual cases, he warned the government would deal with anyone who breached the national security law regardless of where they were located, pointing to the “extraterritorial effects” of the legislation.
Article 38 of the law spells out its application on offences “committed from outside the region by a person who is not a permanent resident of the region”.
Although other activists had floated similar suggestions before, the Hong Kong parliament will be the first to get off the ground, with Leung revealing its preparatory committee had received more than C$1 million (US$777,000) from an anonymous donor.
Leung, a former lawmaker-elect who was disqualified over his anti-China antics during a swearing-in ceremony for Legco in 2016, said with more former opposition figures joining the growing Hong Kong diaspora since the imposition of the security law, it had created a sufficient pool of potential candidates to run in the election.
