Background
British under Queen Victoria brokered a 99-year lease agreement for the use of Hong Kong after China lost a series of wars fought over the British trade in tea and opium, which ended on 01 July 1997. Hong Kong became a special administrative region and continues to maintain governing and economic systems separate from those of mainland China, also called “one country, two systems’.
Article 23 of the Basic Law
China has over the years been trying to tighten its hold by squeezing the freedom of expressions and such democratic rights. Article 23 of the Basic Law (BL 23) states: The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region shall enact laws on its own to prohibit any act of treason, secession, sedition, subversion against the Central People’s Government, or theft of state secrets, to prohibit foreign political organisations or bodies from conducting political activities in the Region, and to prohibit political organisations or bodies of the Region from establishing ties with foreign political organisations or bodies.
Article 23 has never been implemented due to public fears it would curtail Hong Kong’s cherished rights, such as freedom of expression and the press. Those liberties are unseen on the mainland and are protected by an agreement made before Britain handed Hong Kong back to China in 1997.
An attempt to enact the clause in 2003 was shelved after half a million people took to the streets in protest against it. Then security chief Regina had to resign following the failure.
“Why has China moved to impose the law?”
China’s parliament has proposed introducing a new security law in Hong Kong, a move expected to fan fresh protests in the semi-autonomous financial hub.
The proposal, which has been condemned by the United States and Hong Kong pro-democracy figures as an assault on the city’s freedoms, was submitted for deliberation on Friday. Last month, Beijing’s top official in Hong Kong, Liaison Office director Luo Huining, said the city urgently needed a new national security law to combat violent protesters and independence advocates.
“What will happen next?”
China’s legislature is expected to rubber-stamp the draft resolution on Thursday, the last day of the annual parliamentary gathering, before the details are fleshed out next month at another meeting of the NPC’s Standing Committee. Wang said the law would then be implemented locally, an unprecedented move that could spark a further wave of protests.
“What does this mean for ‘One country, Two systems’?”
Pro-democracy lawmakers have said the legislation marks the end of ‘One country, Two systems’ – a reference to the handover agreement that has given Hong Kong a limited form of autonomy since returning from British to Chinese rule in 1997.
Even before the proposed security law, there were fears that Beijing was steadily eroding those freedoms. Beijing is now completely walking back on their obligation owed to the Hong Kong people.”
Amnesty International warned the legislation posed “a quasi-existential threat to the rule of law in Hong Kong”.