China warned Britain on Wednesday that British interference in Hong Kong will backfire, after the former colonial power vowed to give sanctuary to locals who may flee the city if a controversial security law is passed. The United States and Britain have enraged Beijing with their criticism of planned national security legislation that critics fear would destroy the semi-autonomous city’s limited freedoms.
British interference in Hong Kong: Concerns voiced over Hong Kong
British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab has further angered Beijing by suggesting that it had time to “reconsider” the plan, which could soon be enacted after the proposal was endorsed by China’s rubber-stamp parliament last week.
China's proposed national security law for Hong Kong is in direct conflict with its obligations under the Joint Declaration. If enacted, this law would violate Hong Kong’s autonomy and freedoms. UK and 🇺🇸🇦🇺🇨🇦 are deeply concerned.
https://t.co/bbGgJgHklw pic.twitter.com/e7eQySFDFX— Dominic Raab (@DominicRaab) May 28, 2020
“This proposed national security law undermines the ‘One Country, Two Systems’ framework that I have described, under which Hong Kong is guaranteed a high degree of autonomy with executive, legislative and independent judicial powers,” Raab said.
Read more: New Security Law in Hong Kong approved by Chinese parliament
“To be very clear and specific about this, the imposition of national security legislation on Hong Kong by the government in Beijing, rather than through Hong Kong’s own institutions, lies in direct conflict with Article 23 of China’s own Basic Law. And it lies in direct conflict with China’s international obligations freely assumed under the Joint Declaration,” he added.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson, meanwhile, said London would not “walk away” from Hong Kongers worried by Beijing’s control over the international business hub.
Johnson wrote in a column for The Times newspaper and the South China Morning Post that he would offer millions of Hong Kongers visas and a possible route to UK citizenship if China persists with its national security law.
China irked over British interference in Hong Kong
Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said Beijing had lodged “serious representations” with London over Raab’s remarks, which “grossly interfered” in Hong Kong’s affairs.
“We advise the UK to step back from the brink, abandon their Cold War mentality and colonial mindset, and recognise and respect the fact that Hong Kong has returned” to China, Zhao said at a regular briefing.
China says Britain should 'stop interference' in Hong Kong pic.twitter.com/KvV5fjVqGJ
— Reuters (@Reuters) June 26, 2019
Zhao said London must “immediately stop interfering in Hong Kong’s affairs and China’s internal affairs, or this will definitely backfire.”
Read more: Joint Declaration in danger says Britain as it cautions China over Hong Kong
Hong Kong has been rocked by months of huge and often violent pro-democracy protests over the past year.
In response Beijing has announced plans to introduce a sweeping national security law covering secession, subversion of state power, terrorism and foreign interference.
What is the new Hong Kong security law?
The law will “guard against, stop and punish any separatism, subversion of the national regime, terrorist group activities and such behaviours that seriously harm national security”.
It would authorise Chinese lawmakers to directly enact long-delayed Hong Kong security legislation itself at a future date, rather than leaving it up to the territory’s administration.
Read more: Protests, alarm greet China plan for Hong Kong security law
China made clear it wanted the legislation passed after Hong Kong was rocked by seven months of massive and sometimes violent pro-democracy protests last year.
Wang Chen, deputy chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, told delegates Beijing must “take powerful measures to lawfully prevent, stop and punish” anti-China forces in Hong Kong.
The new law would punish secession, subversion of state power, terrorism and acts that endanger national security, as well as allow mainland security agencies to operate openly in Hong Kong.
On the final day of the congress, delegates endorsed plans for the law, with a higher body now tasked with formulating the specific legislation.
NPC Standing Committee Vice Chairman Wang Chen said last week that Hong Kong’s delays in implementing its own security law had forced the Chinese leadership to take action.
“More than 20 years after Hong Kong’s return (to China) relevant laws are yet to materialise due to the sabotage and obstruction by those trying to sow trouble in Hong Kong and China at large, as well as external hostile forces,” Wang said.
China says the law — which will bypass Hong Kong’s legislature — is needed to tackle “terrorism” and “separatism” in a restless city it now regards as a direct national security threat.
But opponents, including many Western nations, fear it will bring mainland-style political oppression to a business hub that was supposedly guaranteed freedoms and autonomy for 50 years after its 1997 handover to China from Britain.
In parliament on Tuesday, Raab said he had reached out to Australia, New Zealand, the United States and Canada about contingency plans if the law creates a deluge of Hong Kongers looking to leave.
“I raised it on the Five Eyes call yesterday — the possibility of burden sharing if we see a mass exodus from Hong Kong,” Raab told lawmakers, referencing the intelligence-sharing alliance between the five powers.
Britain offers Hong Kongers citizenship
In his column, Johnson wrote that if China proceeds to justify the “fears” of Hong Kongers, “then Britain could not in good conscience shrug our shoulders and walk away; instead we will honour our obligations and provide an alternative.”
About 350,000 people in Hong Kong currently hold British National (Overseas) passports, which allow visa-free access to Britain for up to six months.
Another 2.5 million people would be eligible to apply for one.
Johnson said Britain could allow BN(O) holders to come for a renewable period of 12 months “and be given further immigration rights, including the right to work, which could place them on a route to citizenship”.
Britain says it views the proposed law as a breach of the 1984 agreement with Beijing ahead of the handover guaranteeing Hong Kong’s freedoms and a level of autonomy — a deal that formed the bedrock of its rise as a world class finance centre.
“Britain does not seek to prevent China’s rise,” Johnson wrote. “It is precisely because we welcome China as a leading member of the world community that we expect it to abide by international agreements.”
But Zhao said the Sino-British agreement “does not contain a single word or clause that gives the UK any responsibility for Hong Kong after its handover”.
His comments came as political tensions are rising in Hong Kong once more.
On Wednesday lawmakers in the city’s pro-Beijing weighted legislature restarted debate on a law that would criminalise insults to China’s national anthem.
The bill is likely to be passed on Thursday — a day when Hong Kongers will also mark the anniversary of Beijing’s 1989 Tiananmen crackdown, despite city authorities banning the traditional annual vigil because of the coronavirus.
AFP with additional input by GVS News Desk