China is undermining Hong Kong’s judicial independence: US Secretary of State World news
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken criticized China for undermining the independence of Hong Kong’s courts, as the State Department released a new report condemning Beijing’s crackdown on dissent in the Asian financial center.
The US has already faced criticism from China for suppressing free speech, targeting journalists and civil society groups and denying Hong Kong residents the right to freely elect their leader. Blinken’s comments on Friday underscored growing criticism that a legal system that helped make the city a hub for national corporations has been undermined by efforts to end the pro-democracy movement that led to large, anti-violence sometime in 2019.
“The People’s Republic of China continues to undermine Hong Kong’s judicial independence and the rule of law,” Blinken said in a statement. “Over the past year, the PRC and Hong Kong authorities have continued to criminalize, violating the human rights and fundamental freedoms of people in Hong Kong and breaking the promised independence of the city.”
Blinken’s comments followed an annual State Department report detailing how it said Hong Kong authorities continued to use Beijing’s 2020 National Security Law to undermine the rule of law. Officials have continued to “arrest and prosecute people for peaceful political expression that is critical of local and central governments, including for posting and posting social media,” according to the report.
Hong Kong’s answer
In a lengthy response, a Hong Kong government spokesman said the city “strongly disapproves and rejects the baseless and unfounded comments and smears” contained in the report. Hong Kong urged the US to stop “interfering in Hong Kong affairs and the internal affairs of China in general,” saying the city’s judiciary remains “independent and impartial” and “free from any interference,” especially on the an issue involving national security.
Legal scholars have criticized the security law, among other things, for a provision that allows the Hong Kong government to appoint judges who try national security cases, and remove them if the judge “makes any statement or behave in any way that endangers national security. “
Blinken’s critical comments, and the detailed report, come as China’s Hong Kong chief-elect John Lee attempts to revive the city’s reputation as an Asian financial center following the easing of Covid-19 restrictions. a related organization that kept the city isolated during the worst of the pandemic. . Hong Kong’s long-standing appeal to international trade is the historical name of the city’s courts, which are different from courts in China that are effectively controlled by the Communist Party.
The Hong Kong government “faces a real challenge as it tries to break away from the events of 2019 and 2020, and to refocus international attention on Hong Kong’s long-term role as a business hub,” said Thomas Kellogg, executive director. said Georgetown University’s Graduate School. for Flag Rule.
“It will be difficult for the Hong Kong government to convince the international community that the changes made by the NSL – and the harm it does to judicial independence – will not affect the business environment,” he said, referring to the National Security Law. . . “Furthermore, many key NSL provisions require private businesses to provide evidence in NSL cases, which would be a notorious nightmare for any western business that finds itself on the receiving end of such a request from the Hong Kong police.”
The State Department’s opposition only adds to ongoing US-China tensions over everything from US efforts to curtail the flow of advanced semiconductors to China to this week’s “transgression” by the US of Taiwan President Tsai Ing-Wen, who he expected meeting in California with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has drawn threats from Chinese officials.
