{"id":17158,"date":"2024-03-20T09:48:17","date_gmt":"2024-03-20T09:48:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/2024\/03\/20\/hong-kong-passes-second-national-security-law-widening-crackdown-powers-and-aligning-city-more-closely-with-mainland-china\/"},"modified":"2024-03-20T09:48:17","modified_gmt":"2024-03-20T09:48:17","slug":"hong-kong-passes-second-national-security-law-widening-crackdown-powers-and-aligning-city-more-closely-with-mainland-china","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/2024\/03\/20\/hong-kong-passes-second-national-security-law-widening-crackdown-powers-and-aligning-city-more-closely-with-mainland-china\/","title":{"rendered":"Hong Kong passes second national security law, widening crackdown powers and aligning city more closely with mainland China"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Hong Kong\u2019s legislature unanimously passed sweeping\u00a0new powers\u00a0on Tuesday <\/strong>that critics and analysts warned would align the financial hub\u2019s national security laws more closely with those used on the Chinese mainland and deepen\u00a0an ongoing crackdown on dissent. <\/p>\n

The lengthy <\/strong>national security bill \u2013 the first draft ran to 212 pages \u2013 was rushed through the city\u2019s opposition-less Legislative Council with unusual haste at the request of city leader John Lee\u00a0and debated over just 11 days. <\/p>\n

Coming into effect on Saturday, the law introduces 39 new national security crimes, adding to an already powerful national security law that was directly imposed by Beijing on Hong Kong in 2020 after huge and sometimes violent democracy protests the year before. <\/p>\n

That law has already transformed\u00a0Hong Kong with authorities jailing dozens of political opponents, forcing civil society groups and outspoken media outlets to disband and transforming the once freewheeling city into one that prioritizes patriotism. <\/p>\n

Known locally as Article 23, the new national security legislation covers a raft of new crimes including treason, espionage, external interference and unlawful handling of state secrets, with the most serious offenses punishable by up to life imprisonment. <\/p>\n

Hong Kong\u2019s Chief Executive Lee described it as a \u201chistorical moment for Hong Kong.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cWe \u2026 have completed a historical mission, lived up to the trust of the country and did not let the Central government down,\u201d he said, referring to China\u2019s Communist Party leadership in Beijing. <\/p>\n

China and Hong Kong\u2019s leaders say the new laws are needed to \u201cplug loopholes\u201d as part of their drive to \u201crestore stability\u201d following the huge 2019 protests. They 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

The new legislation also comes as Hong Kong\u2019s government is embarking on a high-profile campaign this year to revive the city\u2019s business credentials after the political crackdown \u2013 combined with nearly three years of strict coronavirus controls \u2013 sparked an exodus of local and international talent. <\/p>\n

\u2018Chilling effect\u2019<\/h2>\n

\u201cThe Hong Kong authorities are eager to further tighten information control in the city as a corollary of stricter security legislation,\u201d said Eric Lai, research fellow at Georgetown Center for Asian Law, and an expert on Hong Kong\u2019s legal system. <\/p>\n

Lai expects a \u201cchilling effect\u201d to deepen across society. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe business community would be particularly affected by the new \u2018theft of state secrets\u2019 and \u2018espionage\u2019 offenses,\u201d Lai added. <\/p>\n

The new legislation has outlawed \u201cunlawful acquisition,\u201d \u201cpossession,\u201d and \u201cdisclosure of state secrets,\u201d alongside the crime of \u201cespionage.\u201d Offenders can be jailed for up to 20 years in the most serious circumstance. <\/p>\n

Observers say the law\u2019s wording has\u00a0a broad interpretation for what counts as a state secret. <\/p>\n

The definition ranges from a secret \u201cconcerning the construction of national defense\u201d and \u201cdiplomatic or foreign affair activities\u201d of China to any \u201cmajor policy decision on affairs\u201d and \u201cthe economic or social development\u201d of both Beijing and Hong Kong. <\/p>\n

Hung Ho-fung, sociology professor at Johns Hopkins University, said that when social and economic affairs are treated as state secrets, \u201cthis is to say it can include anything.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cWith these draconian and not clearly defined clauses, even apolitical business persons can get into trouble and will face the risk of their office being raided and themselves being detained, arrested or placed under exit ban as in many cases in mainland China,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

\u201cThis will surely increase the doubt, anxiety, and uncertainty of foreign businesses in Hong Kong.\u201d <\/p>\n

In mainland China, national security laws have often ensnared both local and foreign businesses in opaque investigations. <\/p>\n

China\u2019s state security authorities raided multiple offices of international advisory firm Capvision last year, part of a broader crackdown on the consulting industry as Beijing tightens control over what it considers sensitive information related to national security. <\/p>\n

The law also labels the involvement of \u201cexternal forces\u201d \u2013 a byword for foreign governments and organizations \u2013 as an aggravating factor that warrants tougher sentencing. <\/p>\n

Amnesty International China director Sarah Brooks said the leg\ufeffislation \u201cdelivered another crushing blow to human rights in the city.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cThe authorities have enacted this law in the blink of an eye, killing off any remaining shred of hope that public outcry could counter its most destructive elements,\u201d Brooks said in a statement. \u201cThis is a devastating moment for the people of Hong Kong.\u201d <\/p>\n

Johannes Hack, President of German Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, said while many German businesses remain committed to Hong Kong, they would like to see Hong Kong maintain its unique position that includes free flow of capital and a common law court system. <\/p>\n

\u201c[The law] is making it a bit hard to make the case for our German shareholders that this is Hong Kong and this is different from mainland China,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

That is something Emily Lau, a former pro-democracy lawmaker, also worries about, that what made Hong Kong distinct is fast fading. <\/p>\n

\u201cBut we are different from the rest of China. But the difference is getting less and less, which is very sad.\u201d <\/p>\n\n

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

Hong Kong\u2019s legislature unanimously passed sweeping\u00a0new powers\u00a0on Tuesday that critics and analysts warned would align the financial hub\u2019s national security laws more closely with those used on the Chinese mainland and deepen\u00a0an ongoing crackdown on dissent. The lengthy national security bill \u2013 the first draft ran to 212 pages \u2013 was rushed through the city\u2019s <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":17159,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-17158","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\/17158","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=17158"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17158\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17159"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17158"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17158"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17158"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}