The chairs of eight parliamentary foreign affairs committees across Europe have written to the Chinese government in opposition to Hong Kong’s new security law, saying it violates “basic human rights” in their countries.
The joint statement by the committee chairs, from countries like Germany, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Latvia, Norway and the European Parliament itself, shows that a network of parliamentarians is being built to shift European governments towards a tougher stance on China’s abuse of human rights.
Politicians say European public opinion has lost faith in China because of the way it has stepped in to impose a new security law, which gives Beijing unprecedented powers, without consulting the people of Hong Kong.
The law, which came into effect in late June, says secession, subversion, terrorism, and collusion with foreign forces are punishable by a maximum sentence of life in prison, and allows mainland security agents to operate in Hong Kong for the first time.
Parliamentarians, including the chairman of the UK Foreign Affairs Committee, Tom Tugendhat, and the chairman of the German Bundestag’s Foreign Affairs Committee, Norbert Röttgen, said that “the law is not a product of the city’s own institutions, it is imposed by Beijing, and as such constitutes a violation of the 1984 Sino-British joint declaration, which is submitted to the United Nations. ”
They added: “The law raises significant concern that judicial independence is undermined by empowering the Hong Kong chief executive rather than its chief justice to appoint judges to hear national security cases. This threatens civil rights and commercial stability.
“Hong Kong’s autonomy and independent judiciary have guaranteed the personal rights and freedoms of its people for decades and have made the territory an important cornerstone in the international trading system. Given its rights and the importance of Hong Kong, this cannot be seen as a purely domestic matter. By violating a legally binding agreement and undermining the rule of law, this also undermines good faith among nations that enter into international agreements. ”
The authors defended their right to take an interest in Hong Kong, noting that article 38 of the new law “seeks to violate the sovereignty of other nations.” The article says the law applies to acts committed “outside the region” by foreigners who are not residents of Hong Kong or China.
“By claiming extraterritorial jurisdiction, it infringes on freedom of expression in countries like ours that place a high value on civil rights. It is difficult to see how an extradition treaty could be agreed with Hong Kong or China when Beijing’s demands so directly violate basic human rights in our nations. ”
China’s good faith will only be restored to European nations if China withdraws the new law, parliamentarians say.
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