Australia has suspended its extradition agreement with Hong Kong and extended a hand to help Hong Kong residents who currently hold an Australian temporary work or student visa after the Chinese Communist Party imposed its National Security Law on the city, which had previously had a judicial system independent of the mainland’s totalitarian regime.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced on July 9 that Australia had changed its policy settings to extend its offering to current temporary skilled visa holders by five years from today and also offer them a pathway to permanent residency at the extended visa period.
Australia has formally notified Hong Kong and advised CCP officials of its decision to drop the extradition treaty.
Morrison added that Australia’s refugee and humanitarian program remained open for all Hong Kong residents to apply for, as it is for all people suffering oppression from persecution.
Students from Hong Kong will also be eligible for temporary graduate visas with the option for permanent residency at the end of that period.
“That means if you’re a current or future student, you will be able to stay for a total of five years once you’ve graduated with a pathway to permanent residency at the end of that period,” Morrison said.
Morrison acknowledged that many residents of Hong Kong may be looking to move their life and businesses overseas as a result of the CCP’s draconian security law.
“Australia has always been a very welcoming country to such people from all around the world,” he said. “We are a great immigration nation. I would argue we are the best.”
The decision comes with a warning for Australians not to travel to Hong Kong as the new law means foreigners can be extradited to the mainland on “vaguely defined national security grounds” and subject to the mainland’s justice system that is overseen by the communist party state.
It follows a similar advisory from DFAT earlier this week warning Australians not to travel to China.
The CCP recently introduced a national security law for Hong Kong, which DFAT described as “vaguely defined.”
This means that travellers could break the law without intending to.
Currently, Hong Kong police are arresting pro-democracy protesters for holding flags, posters, and pamphlets that support Hong Kong’s freedom from the CCP.
On Wednesday, the prime minister dismissed concerns that the CCP may retaliate over its decision to offer safe haven to Hong Kong citizens.
‘Five Eyes’ Countries to Back Freedom After Beijing Solidifies National Security Law
Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne spoke with her counterparts from the United States, United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Canada on July 9 to discuss Beijing’s recent actions in the former British colony of Hong Kong.Payne wrote on Twitter that the member countries of the Five Eyes intelligence alliance had discussed matters of global security, including concerns that the CCP’s new law undermines the “One Country, Two Systems” policy and trust in international agreements.
Payne went on to say that the alliance “will work together for human rights and freedoms.”
After the announcement, Victorian Liberal Senator James Paterson shared a joint statement released by the prime minister, foreign affairs minister, and attorney-general about the extradition treaty on Twitter.
Labor MP Backs Government’s Decision
Labor MP and shadow attorney-general Mark Dreyfus said on Twitter that he backs the Morrison government’s decision to drop the Hong Kong extradition agreement.“Suspending Australia’s extradition treaty with Hong Kong is the right call,” he said. “China’s move to effectively end Hong Kong’s independent legal status means it is no longer tenable for us to maintain a separate extradition treaty with Hong Kong.”
