4 US Lawmakers Oppose Hong Kong Chief Executive’s Attendance at APEC Summit

U.S. State Secretary Antony Blinken (L) attends a bilateral meeting with Thailand's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai (R) on the sidelines of the APEC summit, in Bangkok, on November 17, 2022. Chalinee Thirasupa/AFP via Getty Images

Four bipartisan members of the U.S. Congress recently jointly signed a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken, opposing the invitation of Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu to attend the APEC summit in November.

The next Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Conference (APEC) will be held in San Francisco in November this year (2023). Four bipartisan members of the U.S. Congress have recently jointly signed a letter to Blinken opposing the invitation of Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu to attend. They claimed that by inviting Lee to the summit, who was a senior member of the Hong Kong government that violently suppressed peaceful protesters in 2019, would send a terrible signal to human rights violators around the world.

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.), and Rep. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.) jointly wrote to Blinken on June 7 expressing concern about inviting Lee to the APEC summit. They also criticized the Hong Kong government for its part in violently suppressing peaceful protesters in 2019, so inviting Chief Executive Lee to attend the APEC meeting sends a terrible signal to human rights violators worldwide.

The joint letter mentioned that the U.S. Department of Treasury imposed sanctions on Lee, then-Secretary for Security, in 2020 because he was accused of employing violence against peaceful protesters who opposed the draconian National Security Law (NSL). Unless Lee obtained a waiver from the U.S. government, he would not be allowed to step foot in the United States.

The four lawmakers expressed disappointment with the Biden administration’s plan to exempt Lee from sanctions and allow him to enter the United States to attend the APEC meeting.

Name of Victims Mentioned in the Letter

The letter mentioned that Retiring U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman confirmed that the U.S. government plans to invite Lee to come to the APEC meeting. She explained that the U.S., as the host, has the key responsibility to promote regional economic dialogue and cooperate with China to maintain global macroeconomic stability.

The four lawmakers responded that, while understanding the importance of promoting regional economic dialogue with Indo-Pacific allies and partners, yet by inviting Lee, a sanctioned human rights violator, is an affront to all those persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and its proxies in Hong Kong. They named American citizens Samuel Bickett, John Leung Shing-wan, as well as Hongkongers Jimmy Lai, Cardinal Joseph Zen Ze-kiun, and Joshua Wong Chi-fung (as notable examples).

The last paragraph of the letter stated that since the passage of the “Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act'' in 2019 until March 2023, every U.S. Secretary of State has failed to certify that Hong Kong enjoys a high degree of autonomy (a prerequisite for Hong Kong to enjoy special treatment under the law). The four lawmakers, therefore, urged Blinken to veto any action that would give China a disproportionate presence at the APEC summit, including barring Lee from entering the United States.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said at a regular press conference on June 8 that he believes the U.S. will fulfill its commitments to ensure the rightful participation of representatives of all APEC members, including Hong Kong. A spokesperson for the Chief Executive’s Office said that the host of APEC has the responsibility to invite Lee, and Lee’s “leadership in guiding Hong Kong to staunchly fulfill its responsibility of maintaining national security, is fair and square, unwavering with due confidence.”

Scholar’s View of the Situation

Benson Wong Wai-kwok, former assistant professor of politics and international relations at Baptist University, said in an interview with the Epoch Times on June 8 that whether Lee or other Hong Kong government officials can enter the United States to attend the APEC meeting may depend on three factors.

First, whether the U.S. government will use the entry of Lee and other Hong Kong government officials to show goodwill to the CCP that it is willing to continue the dialogue with the latter.

Second, the U.S. still wants Blinken to visit China later this year. An official visit by Lee and other government members to the United States may be one of the terms of exchange.

Third, whether the Biden administration sees it is still important to stand with Hong Kong people’s demands against the CCP since 2019. If it does, then inviting Lee, who has been sanctioned by the United States, to participate in the meeting is just beyond understanding.

In addition, Wong also questioned whether the U.S. government has misjudged the CCP’s show of good intentions. And the invitation of Lee to attend the APEC event is not just an insult to Hong Kong people who are persecuted and oppressed by the NSL, but he also questioned whether the U.S. would betray Hong Kong people.

Sanctioned By The US Since 2020

On Aug. 7, 2020, the U.S. Department of Treasury announced sanctions on 11 officials from Hong Kong and mainland China, including then Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, Secretary of Justice Teresa Cheng Yeuk-wah, Secretary for Security John Lee Ka-chiu, (now Chief Executive), Commissioner of Police Chris Tang Ping-keung (now Secretary for Security), together with other senior members of the Hong Kong Police force and senior members of the Liaison Office.

Past record also shows on Nov. 17, 2021, the then-chief executive, Carrie Lam, revealed in response to media questions that her application for a U.S. visa was rejected. The chief executive’s office later added that the reason for the refusal was the US government’s sanctions against her.

In addition, last year’s APEC summit was held in Thailand, where CCP leader Xi Jinping and Hong Kong chief executive Lee Ka-chiu both attended.