{"id":16666,"date":"2024-03-08T12:55:35","date_gmt":"2024-03-08T12:55:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/2024\/03\/08\/hong-kong-unveils-its-second-national-security-law-aligning-city-more-closely-with-mainland-china\/"},"modified":"2024-03-08T12:55:35","modified_gmt":"2024-03-08T12:55:35","slug":"hong-kong-unveils-its-second-national-security-law-aligning-city-more-closely-with-mainland-china","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/2024\/03\/08\/hong-kong-unveils-its-second-national-security-law-aligning-city-more-closely-with-mainland-china\/","title":{"rendered":"Hong Kong unveils its second national security law, aligning city more closely with mainland China"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Hong Kong\u2019s government unveiled a new suite of powerful national security laws on Friday that critics and foreign governments warn could deepen the ongoing crackdown in the city and further undermine its reputation as an international business hub. <\/p>\n

The 212-page draft bill tabled into the city\u2019s opposition-less legislature introduces a range of new national security crimes including treason, espionage, external interference and disclosure of state secrets. <\/p>\n

The most serious offenses are punishable with up to life imprisonment, with the involvement of \u201cexternal forces\u201d \u2013 a byword for foreign governments and organizations \u2013 treated as an aggravating factor. <\/p>\n

China and Hong Kong\u2019s leaders say the laws are needed as part of their drive to \u201crestore stability\u201d following huge and often violent democracy protests in 2019 and argue their legislation is similar to other national security laws around the world. <\/p>\n

Critics counter that what China\u2019s Communist Party views as national security offences are far broader and more sweeping, often ensnaring political criticism, dissent and even business activity that would not be criminalized elsewhere. <\/p>\n

They point to the application of national security laws in mainland China as well as in Hong Kong where a Beijing-imposed national security law has already transformed the once outspoken city since 2020, silencing almost all dissent and\u00a0jailing dozens of political opponents. Many civil society groups have disbanded, and\u00a0outspoken media outlets\u00a0have shut down. <\/p>\n

The new draft Hong Kong law \u2013 known locally as Article 23 \u2013 is aimed at \u201cfilling the loopholes\u201d left by the Beijing-imposed version enacted in 2020, according to the Hong Kong government. <\/p>\n

A previous attempt to pass Article 23 laws back in 2003 sparked huge protests and a government u-turn. <\/p>\n

But the atmosphere in Hong Kong this time around is very different. <\/p>\n

Many of the city\u2019s leading pro-democracy figures are in jail either convicted or facing charges under the 2020 national security law. <\/p>\n

Others have fled overseas, and the city\u2019s once raucous legislature\u00a0has been cleared of pro-democracy opposition politicians, resembling instead the type of rubber stamp bodies favored by the Chinese Communist Party on the mainland. <\/p>\n

Public consultations for the new laws this time lasted 28 days, two months short of the time given during the earlier attempt in 2003 when hundreds of thousands of residents hit the streets in protest. <\/p>\n

The government said 98% of the 13,147 pieces of feedback it received during the consultation period \u201cshowed support\u201d for the new law and just 0.7% voiced opposition, including a dozen from what it called \u201coverseas anti-China organizations or abscondees.\u201d <\/p>\n

Hong Kong\u2019s legislature convened special sessions for the first and second reading of the proposed bill on Friday and within three hours after it was tabled. <\/p>\n

They were prompted by Hong Kong\u2019s leader John Lee \u2013 a former police officer and security chief \u2013 who told lawmakers to pass the law \u201cat full speed.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cCompleting the legislative work even one day earlier means we can more effectively safeguard national security one day earlier,\u201d he said in a letter to the legislature on Thursday. <\/p>\n

Authorities have yet to announce when a third reading will take place. <\/p>\n

Last month, the United States warned Article 23 risks \u201ccompounding the 2020 National Security Law that has curtailed the rights and freedoms of people in Hong Kong.\u201d <\/p>\n

In a statement, the US Department of State said it was concerned by the \u201cbroad and vague definitions of \u2018state secrets\u2019 and \u2018external interference,\u2019\u201d which could potentially be used to silence dissent, and some of the provisions that may have extraterritorial effects. <\/p>\n\n

This post appeared first on cnn.com<\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hong Kong\u2019s government unveiled a new suite of powerful national security laws on Friday that critics and foreign governments warn could deepen the ongoing crackdown in the city and further undermine its reputation as an international business hub. The 212-page draft bill tabled into the city\u2019s opposition-less legislature introduces a range of new national security <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":16667,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-16666","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16666","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16666"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16666\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16667"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16666"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16666"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16666"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}