They are calling it Hong Kong’s “last battle” as authorities face massive opposition to a bill that would enable extradition to the mainland. But with China’s increasingly assertive approach to Hong Kong, the battle may already be lost.
a journalist that her favorite politician was Chinese leader Xi Jinping — insists the bill will go ahead, despite a mass protest Sunday that organizers said drew more than a million people. Authorities estimated the number to be a quarter of that.
The bill is likely to be finalized within weeks. Businesses across the city are planning to strike Wednesday, when the bill is to be debated in the city’s Legislative Council, where around half the members are popularly elected. Pro-democracy activists are planning further protest action.journalists Tuesday that the bill struck a balance between the protection of human rights, addressing public concerns, and ensuring Hong Kong did not become a haven for fugitives.
“What is clear is Beijing’s direction of travel. They need Hong Kong brought to book. They need to eliminate opposition. They need to intensify the integration of the city and that obviously represents a fundamental clash with the liberal democratic values that many Hongkongers uphold but is also the core of the Hong Kong system.
The new bill raises fears that Hong Kong citizens, foreigners living in Hong Kong and even people passing through Hong Kong’s airport could be arrested and sent to mainland China, where critics say the legal system fails to guarantee a fair trial. Joseph Cheng Yu-shek, a pro-democracy activist and former chair of the political science department at City University Hong Kong, said in an interview that many Hongkongers did not trust China’s legal system because it was controlled by the Communists.
Singapore Latest News, Singapore Headlines
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