Hong Kong: UK to suspend extradition treaty with former colony

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab is expected to suspend the UK extradition treaty with Hong Kong later amid mounting tensions between London and Beijing.

It follows the controversial national security law imposed on Chinese soil and the decision to ban Huawei from the UK’s 5G network.

The UK has offered residence rights to three million Hong Kong people.

China has accused the United Kingdom of meddling in its own internal affairs.

Beijing has insisted that it is committed to respecting international law and has accused the United Kingdom and the United States of trying to destabilize Hong Kong.

Raab is expected to make a statement to Parliament later on “our extradition arrangements and also a number of other measures we could wish to take” regarding the former British colony.

Such arrangements have been in effect for over 30 years.

What is the extradition treaty?

The existing agreement establishes the basis on which those suspected of committing crimes in Hong Kong can be detained if they are in the United Kingdom and are returned to trial subject to due process of law and the approval of ministers.

But political and economic relations between the two nations have become strained in recent months, with the UK reversing its decision to give Chinese firm Huawei a central role in the UK’s 5G communications infrastructure.

The UK denounced the new security law imposed in Hong Kong as “deeply disturbing”, and the foreign secretary called the move “a serious step”.

So far, we have had the best indication from the Foreign Secretary that the United Kingdom is going to scrap its extradition treaty with Hong Kong in response to China’s actions there.

That is a political decision designed to send another message to Beijing.

Sanctions, which could target senior Chinese officials, are also an option. But they are more complicated and are likely to take longer.

At the same time, tensions with Russia are re-emerging due to piracy and interference in the UK political system.

On Tuesday or Wednesday, we will finally look at Russia’s report, which will likely examine a wide range of ways that Russia is alleged to have tried to use influence, including the 2014 Brexit referendum and 2014 Scottish independence referendum. Last week, the ministers accused Russia of trying to hack the UK vaccine investigation.

All this points to intensifying tensions with both countries in the coming months, just as the UK is trying to establish its place in the international system after Brexit.

The United Kingdom, the United States and the EU have accused Beijing of undermining the “one country, two systems” principle that guarantees a high degree of autonomy for Hong Kong under Chinese rule since the 1997 transfer of sovereignty.

They have said that the new security laws that went into effect last month, which make acts of subversion punishable by life in prison, violate the terms of the 1984 Joint Declaration that protects political and economic freedoms.

In response, the UK has offered the 350,000 Hong Kong residents who hold British national overseas passports, and another 2.6 million who are eligible for them, better residence rights if they wish to come to the UK and a route to possible citizenship .

But China warned that it will retaliate if the United Kingdom imposes sanctions on any of its top officials in relation to human rights crimes and allegations of police brutality in Hong Kong.

Speculation that extradition deals could be suspended follows concerns voiced by high-ranking judges in the UK over threats to the independence of the Hong Kong judicial system.

Lord Reed, Chief Justice of the UK Supreme Court, warned that the practice of UK judges sitting in the Hong Kong Final Court of Appeal is under threat and must “remain consistent with judicial independence and state of law “.

Proposals for an extradition treaty between Hong Kong and China sparked widespread protests last year amid concerns about political interference in the Chinese judicial system and the right to a fair trial.

“Serious and egregious” abuses against Uighurs

The United Kingdom has also intensified its criticism of China’s human rights record, accusing Beijing of “serious and egregious” abuses against the Uighur population in Xinjiang province.

Raab told the BBC that reports of forced sterilization and the broader persecution of the Muslim group “recall something that had not been seen in a long time.”

Labor has also called for sanctions from Chinese officials involved in the alleged abuse of Muslim Uighurs.

The drone images that have been widely circulated appear to show Uighurs blindfolded and driven to trains, and that it has been authenticated by Australian security services.

China’s ambassador to the United Kingdom, Liu Xiaoming, dismissed the talks on concentration camps as “false.”

• NOSTALGIC NOSH: What retro foods returned in the running of the bulls?
• I CAN DESTROY YOU: The groundbreaking drama that makes headlines in closing