Senate Foreign Relations Committee chair Ben Cardin (D-Md.) introduced legislation on Dec. 9 to revoke special treatment for Hong Kong in light of its human rights violations.
“The United States must strengthen and update its policy to counter the PRC and Hong Kong governments’ erosion of Hong Kong’s autonomy and democratic values,”
stated Cardin, using the acronym for the People’s Republic of China, the official name of the country ruled by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
The Hong Kong Policy
Act of 2024 would be an update and a reversal of the 1992 policy on Hong Kong, in which the United States codified its relationship with Hong Kong as separate from its relations with communist China upon Britain’s handover of Hong Kong.
When Britain transferred Hong Kong to China in 1997, it was understood that the port city would retain its own legal system. The arrangement known as “one country, two systems” was seen to have ended in recent years with the CCP’s installment of a series of laws that criminalize political activity with heavy punishments.
The CCP’s encroachment on Hong Kong’s legal system led to months-long, continuous pro-democracy
protests in 2019, and authorities’ heavy-handed response of thousands of arrests led to international condemnation.
In response, the United States in 2019 passed and signed into law the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, which
required the annual renewal of Hong Kong’s special trade status as granted by the 1992 policy. It also allowed visa restrictions on Hong Kong officials who violate human rights, and companion legislation blocked the export of some equipment used by Hong Kong police against protesters.
Cardin called for restoring freedoms in Hong Kong and said the bill could pressure and hold Beijing accountable for human rights abuses. Hong Kong’s status as a global financial center was largely due to its independent legal system, and the loss of it would be a blow to China’s economy, he said.
The bill requires an annual assessment of Hong Kong’s situation, treating it the same as China under communist rule only as long as human rights violations persist.
“It is essential to stand with the people of Hong Kong as they fight for their basic freedoms–both at home and abroad,” Cardin stated.
The bill would allocate resources to the State Department to advance democracy, civilian security, and freedom of information in Hong Kong, as well as require the Hong Kong Business Advisory to flag censorship requests of U.S. companies.
The bill also includes provisions that provide relief to people fleeing persecution and offer temporary protected status to some Hong Kong residents who have immigrated to the United States.
The bill cites a CCP-backed 2020 update to Hong Kong’s national security law as a key turning point. The national security
law vaguely defines secession, subversion, terrorism, and collusion with foreign forces as crimes punishable by life imprisonment. It also gave Chinese authorities broad powers to suppress acts deemed illegal and oversee these cases.
Since the security law was enacted, “hundreds of pro-democracy activists, lawmakers, and journalists have been arrested; civil society organizations have been disbanded; independent media outlets have closed; and academic freedoms and an independent judiciary in Hong Kong have been eroded,” the bill reads.
The law, which has seen subsequent
expansions, has been condemned by the international community.
The United States recently previewed
new sanctions against Hong Kong officials after 45 Hong Kong pro-democracy activists were convicted of subverting the national security law and given sentences as long as 10 years. Beijing said on Dec. 10 it would impose visa
restrictions on U.S. government personnel for taking action on Hong Kong.
