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China made good on its intention to increase its control over Hong Kong. One of the West’s biggest concerns is the erosion of Hong Kong’s autonomy. This article is short so it’s quoted here in its entirety.<\/p>\n
From Reuters:<\/span><\/p>\n BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s parliament on Thursday overwhelmingly approved directly imposing national security legislation on Hong Kong to tackle secession, subversion, terrorism and foreign interference in a city roiled last year by months of anti-government protests.<\/p>\n The National People’s Congress voted 2,878 to 1 in favour of the decision to empower its standing committee to draft the legislation, with six abstentions. The legislators gathered in the Great Hall of the People burst into sustained applause when the vote tally was projected onto screens.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Reuters has the link here<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Trump Administration is considering some moves in response. One response includes removing Hong Kong’s status with regards to tariffs. If Hong Kong does not have its autonomy, as promised by the one country two systems policy, then what applies to China also applies to Hong Kong. China insists that these measures don’t infringe on Hong Kong’s self-rule status quo. They just want to address calls for independence, sedition, etc.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Hong Kong’s government is working on legislation to penalize criticisms of the Chinese national anthem.<\/p>\n From Reuters:<\/span><\/p>\n “No reasonable person can assert today that Hong Kong maintains a high degree of autonomy from China, given facts on the ground,” he said.<\/p>\n He said he certified to Congress that Hong Kong no longer warrants treatment under U.S. laws “in the same manner as U.S. laws were applied to Hong Kong before July 1997,” when Britain ended its administration of the territory and returned it to China.<\/p>\n “It is now clear that China is modeling Hong Kong after itself,” Pompeo said.<\/p>\n The “Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act” approved by Trump last year requires the State Department to certify at least annually that Hong Kong retains enough autonomy to justify the favorable U.S. trading terms that have helped it remain a world financial center.<\/p>\n The United States, the European Union, Britain and others have expressed concern about the legislation, widely seen as a possible turning point for China’s freest city.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n The second Reuters article<\/a> has more details surrounding this topic.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"