State Department Says No Decision Yet on Invitation of Hong Kong to APEC

On June 13, The State Department claimed the invitation letter was an error. It said, 'No decision about invitations has been made'

Chief Executive of Hong Kong, John Lee Ka Chiu on June 6, 2023. (Bill Cox/The Epoch Times)

On June 13, the State Department amended its comment regarding the invitation of Hong Kong’s leader, John Lee Ka Chiu, to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in 2023, saying its invitation to APEC was an error. This comes after lawmakers urged to rescind the invitation as Lee was sanctioned in 2020 by the United States for his role in undermining Hong Kong’s autonomy and democratic processes.

The annual APEC CEO Summit 2023 will be hosted in San Francisco, in November 2023. In February 2023, Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman sent a letter inviting Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee to attend APEC.

Last Wednesday, four lawmakers, including the senior United States senator from Florida, Marco Rubio, the senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Chris Smith, the Senator from Oregon, Jeff Merkley, and a member of the United States House of Representatives, Jim McGovern, called for Lee’s invitation to be rescinded, citing his anti-democratic actions and human rights abuses.

“Because of the Hong Kong government’s violent suppression of peaceful protestors in 2019, inviting Chief Executive Lee to attend the APEC meeting sends a terrible signal to human rights violators worldwide, ” said the lawmakers in the letter.

They also described Lee as a “human rights abuser,” and his presence would give China “disproportional representation” at the APEC.

US: The Invitation Was a Mistake

In response to the letter, on June 8, China’s Foreign Ministry said in Beijing, “China believes that the US will fulfill its commitments to ensure that all APEC members, including Hong Kong, China, attend the meeting smoothly.”

Nevertheless, on June 13, The State Department claimed the invitation letter was an error. It said, “No decision about invitations has been made,” which confirmed that Lee is not yet invited to the APEC summit.

Lee, the Pro-CCP Leader, Was Sanctioned

It is worth noting that in 2019, the then-Secretary for Security, John Lee Ka Chiu, played a significant role in the anti-extradition bill movement, which sparked widespread protests and civil unrest in Hong Kong.

Amid the protest, two million citizens, around a quarter of the HK population, participated in the massive rally against the bill. John Lee, the then-security chief who backed the bill, was criticized for the heavy use of water cannons, tear gas, and rubber bullets in handling protests. Also, over 10,000 pro-democracy protesters were arrested in the movement.

In November 2019, Trump signed into law S. 1838, the “Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act of 2019”, and backed the protesters. On July 14, 2020, he signed the Hong Kong Autonomy Act, passed on 1 July, right after the CCP forcibly imposed the National Security Law on Hong Kong (HKNSL). The Act authorizes the U.S. federal government to impose financial sanctions on “officials and entities in Hong Kong as well as in mainland China that are deemed to help violate Hong Kong’s autonomy, and punishes financial institutions that do business with them.”

Lee was in the first batch of Hong Kong and mainland China officials to be sanctioned by the US, during which he is “designated for being involved in coercing, arresting, detaining, or imprisoning individuals under the authority of the National Security Law, as well as being involved in its development, adoption, or implementation.“

Continues to Hinder Democracy and Freedom

Since coming to power as Chief Executive in 2021, Lee has continued the hard line on pro-democracy activists and freedom of speech, the press, and assembly in Hong Kong.

After the implementation of the National Security Law (NSL), during the three years of Lee’s tenure as Chief Executive of Hong Kong, dozens of independent media were forced to close, and many journalists and activists were arrested. Counselors of the pro-democracy camp were charged with subversion. Numerous unions and civil society organizations were dismantled. Mass protests, public rallies, and demonstrations, which had been happening over the past few decades, are extinct.

The Hong Kong government even seeks a court injunction on a protest song. According to the figures provided by the police, as of March 2023, 175 persons were arrested under the NSL, and 110 were charged. As the NSL prevails over the original Hong Kong common law system, people prosecuted under the NSL face years of detention before trial.