China\u2019s state-run news agency announced the government\u2019s intentions to create a new national security bureau in Hong Kong Saturday, in a highly controversial move\u2026<\/b>
\nChina\u2019s state-run news agency announced the government\u2019s intentions to create a new national security bureau in Hong Kong Saturday, in a highly controversial move toward strengthening its security reach in the semi-autonomous region.
Xinhua News Agency also reported that new regulations will require all bodies in Hong Kong\u2019s government, from finance to immigration, to directly report to the central government in China.
An executive director will reportedly be assigned by the Central People’s Government, which is an \u201corgan\u201d of the People\u2019s Republic of China, who will chair the responsibilities of \u201csafeguarding\u201d China\u2019s national security interests.
The new security bureau will analyze national security situations in Hong Kong and \u201cprovide comments and suggestions for major strategies and policies,\u201d according to the Xinhua report.
China passed a draft of the new national security laws Friday, which targets four new levels of criminal offenses in Hong Kong, including succession, subversion of state power, local terrorist activities, and collaborating with foreign or external foreign forces to endanger national security.
However, China has not clarified how each of these criminal offenses is determined.
The new security measures proposed by the Chinese government have received widespread criticism from the U. S. and several other nations.
The Group of Seven (G-7) condemned China\u2019s efforts to exert increased security powers over Hong Kong in a statement earlier this week, saying: \u201cThis action would curtail and threaten the fundamental rights and freedoms of all the population protected by the rule of law and the existence of an independent justice system.\u201d
\u201cChina\u2019s decision is not in conformity with the Hong Kong Basic Law and its international commitments under the principles of the legally binding, UN-registered Sino-British Joint Declaration,\u201d the G-7 statement read. \u201cThe proposed national security law would risk seriously undermining the \u2018One Country, Two Systems\u2019 principle and the territory\u2019s high degree of autonomy.\u201d
The Chinese government is attempting to enact Article 23 of the Basic Law, which was established after the British handed over the semi-autonomous territory in 1997 from previous colonial rule.
The article reported that Hong Kong will \u201cenact laws on its own to prohibit any act of treason, secession, sedition [or] subversion against the Central People’s Government.\u201d However, such a law has never been passed due to widespread protests.
\u201cWe strongly deplore and firmly oppose the joint statement issued by the G-7 foreign ministers,\u201d a Chinese ministry spokesperson said in response to the statement earlier this week. \u201cChina\u2019s determination in promoting the national security law in Hong Kong is unwavering.\u201d
Instating a new security bureau in Hong Kong is just one additional step China is taking to exert more control over Hong Kong after years of pro-democracy protests in the region.
Demonstrations erupted in 2019 after the Chinese government sought to pass an extradition bill that would allow China to extradite \u201ccriminals\u201d from Hong Kong to mainland China to be tried.
Chinese government officials have argued Hong Kong has become a safeguard for \u201ccriminals\u201d.
U. S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has openly criticized China\u2019s moves to exert more control over the region, declaring last month that \u201cHong Kong no longer enjoys a high degree of autonomy.\u201d
Tawain and the United Kingdom have announced efforts to help citizens of Hong Kong leave as China tights its grip over the region, including offering a path to citizenship in the U. K. for up to three million Hong Kong residents.
The State Department could not immediately be reached for comment on China\u2019s latest push for increased security control in Hong Kong.<\/p>\n