TikTok to leave Hong Kong as security law raises worries

TikTok to leave Hong Kong as security law raises worries

Hong Kong: TikTok said Tuesday, July 7 that it will stop operations in Hong Kong after the city enacted a sweeping national security law last week.

The company said in a statement that it had decided to halt operations “in light of recent events.” TikTok’s departure from Hong Kong comes as various social media platforms and messaging apps including Facebook, WhatsApp, Telegram, Google and Twitter balk at the possibility of providing user data to Hong Kong authorities.

The social media companies say they are assessing the ramifications of the national security law.

UK offers citizenship to Hong Kong residents after China passes new security law

UK offers citizenship to Hong Kong residents after China passes new security law

Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Wednesday held China in “clear and serious breach of the Sino-British agreement” under which Hong Kong had been handed over to the Chinese authorities and confirmed that a citizenship route will now be offered to Hong Kong’s British National (Overseas) passport holders.

Addressing his weekly Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs) in the House of Commons, Johnson said China’s new National Security Law is a threat to the rights and freedom of the region and in direct conflict with Hong Kong Basic Law.

“We stand for rules and obligations and we think that is the soundest basis of our international relations. The enactment and the imposition of this National Security Law constitutes a clear and serious breach of the Sino-British Joint Declaration. It violates Hong Kong’s high degree of autonomy and is in direct conflict with Hong Kong Basic Law,” he told MPs in Parliament.

“The law also threatens the freedoms and rights protected by the Joint Declaration. We made clear that if China continued down this path, we would introduce a new route for those with British National (Overseas) status to enter the UK, granting them limited leave to remain with the ability to live and work in the UK and thereafter to apply for citizenship. And, that is precisely what we will do now,” he said.

The UK has committed to make it easier for the estimated 350,000 Hong Kong residents who are British National Overseas (BNO) passport holders to come to the UK, as well as nearly 2.6 million others who are eligible to BNO status. Under current rules, they are entitled to visa-free access to the UK for six months but under a new “bespoke” system this will be further extended.

UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab followed up Johnson’s comments with a statement to the Commons in response to China’s imposition of what has been branded an “anti-protest” law in Hong Kong and laid out the specific aspects of the new law which are a flagrant assault on the rights guaranteed under the Sino-British agreement.

“We want a positive relationship with China. We recognise its growth, its stature and the powerful role it can play in the world. It is precisely because we respect China, as a leading member of the international community, that we expect the Chinese government to meet its international obligations, to live up to its international responsibilities, he said.

The minister said that though the Chinese government failed to live up to its commitments and undermined international trust, the UK will ensure it keeps its word to the people of Hong Kong.

“We will grant BN(O)s five years limited leave to remain, with the right to work or study. After these five years, they will be able to apply for settled status. And after further 12 months with settled status, they will be able to apply for citizenship,” said Raab.

“This is a special, bespoke, set of arrangements developed for the unique circumstances we face and in light of our historic commitment to the people of Hong Kong,” he added.

He said that further details of the new visa route will be laid out in Parliament by Home Secretary Priti Patel in due course.

“China’s decision to impose national security legislation on Hong Kong is deeply regrettable, Patel said in a statement.

“Now China have imposed this law we will launch a new immigration route for British Nationals Overseas and their families. The UK has a historic and moral obligation to British Nationals Overseas in Hong Kong and we will honour our commitment to them, she said.

The UK Home Office said the new bespoke route for BN(O)s will be implemented in the coming months, with an exact date and further details to be confirmed. In the meantime, any British National (Overseas) citizens wishing to come to the UK will be able to do so after standard checks.

Opposition Labour Party shadow foreign secretary Lisa Nandy welcomed the government’s move following the “deeply shocking” move by China and ensuing arrests in Hong Kong which she said have “stunned the world”. But she stressed that the government must ensure the new citizenship route for Hong Kong’s BNO passport holders is enforced in an equitable way and not limited to only rich Hong Kong residents who can afford a move to the UK.

“We are concerned that this must not become a scheme simply for wealthy Hong Kongers to abandon the city and leave others behind,” she said.

The new law, which targets secession, subversion and terrorism with punishments up to life in prison, came into effect on Tuesday.

Critics say the law, approved by Chinese President Xi Jinping, effectively puts an end to the “one country, two systems” principle enshrined in the 1985 Joint Declaration, a legally binding agreement signed by the UK and China which protected certain freedoms in the territory for at least 50 years.

China rejects criticism of its actions, on what it says are internal matters.

China approves contentious Hong Kong national security law

China approves contentious Hong Kong national security law

Hong Kong: China has approved a contentious law that would allow authorities to crack down on subversive and secessionist activity in Hong Kong, sparking fears that it would be used to curb opposition voices in the semi-autonomous territory.

Tam Yiu-Chung, Hong Kong’s sole representative to the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, confirmed in an interview with reporters Tuesday that the law had been passed.

He said punishments would not include the death penalty, but did not elaborate on further details such as whether the law could be applied retroactively.

“We hope the law will serve as a deterrent to prevent people from stirring up trouble,” Tam said in the interview.

“Don’t let Hong Kong be used as a tool to split the country.”

The South China Morning Post newspaper and public broadcaster RTHK, both citing unnamed sources, said the standing committee had approved the law unanimously Tuesday.

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam had declined to comment earlier in the day, while the Standing Committee was still meeting. She did say that once the law is passed, “the Hong Kong government will announce it and promulgate it for implementation here, and then I and my senior officials will do our best to respond to everyone’s questions, especially regarding the enforcement of this national law.”

The legislation is aimed at curbing subversive, secessionist and terrorist activities, as well as foreign intervention in the city’s affairs. It follows months of anti-government protests that at times descended into violence in Hong Kong last year.

Prominent Hong Kong pro-democracy activist Joshua Wong, as well as Agnes Chow and Nathan Law, issued statements on Facebook indicating that they would withdraw from pro-democracy organization Demosisto.

Wong said “worrying about life and safety” has become a real issue and that nobody will be able to predict the repercussions of the law, whether it is being extradited to China or facing jail terms of 10 years or more.

Over a hundred protesters gathered at a luxury mall in Hong Kong’s Central business district, chanting slogans including “Free Hong Kong, Revolution Now,” with several holding up a “Hong Kong Independence” flag as well as posters condemning the national security law. Police later cordoned off different areas of the mall, including the atrium, detaining and searching several protesters.

The law has met with strong opposition within Hong Kong and condemnation from former colonial ruler Britain, the U.S., the European Union and others.

Human rights groups have warned the law could target opposition politicians seen as insufficiently loyal to Beijing for arrest or disqualification from running in September elections for the Legislative Council.

Ahead of the announcement, the Trump administration said Monday it will bar defense exports to Hong Kong and will soon require licenses for the sale of items to Hong Kong that have both civilian and military uses.

The administration has warned for weeks that if the law was passed, it would take action to end special U.S. trade and commercial preferences Hong Kong had enjoyed since reverting to Chinese rule in 1997.

“The United States is forced to take this action to protect U.S. national security,” Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a statement.

“We can no longer distinguish between the export of controlled items to Hong Kong or to mainland China. We cannot risk these items falling into the hands of the People’s Liberation Army, whose primary purpose is to uphold the dictatorship of the (ruling Communist Party) by any means necessary.”

The U.S. Senate on Thursday unanimously approved a bill to impose sanctions on businesses and individuals — including the police — that undermine Hong Kong’s autonomy or restrict freedoms promised to the city’s residents.

Britain says it could offer residency and possible citizenship to around 3 million of Hong Kong’s 7.5 million people.

China has denounced all such moves as gross interference in its internal affairs and foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian on Monday said Beijing has decided to retaliate with visa restrictions on “U.S. personnel who perform badly on Hong Kong related issues.”

“The U.S. side’s attempt to obstruct China from promoting Hong Kong’s national security legislation through the so-called sanctions will never succeed,” Zhao told reporters at a daily briefing.

China decided to use the National People’s Congress to enact the legislation after opposition within Hong Kong’s Legislative Council and within society as a whole made it impossible to pass at the local level.

The law is seen as the most significant erosion to date of Hong Kong’s British-style rule of law and high degree of autonomy that China promised Hong Kong would enjoy at least through 2047 under the “one country, two systems” framework.

Passage of the legislation will also allow the central government in Beijing to set up a national security office in Hong Kong to collect and analyze intelligence and deal with criminal cases related to national security.