Hong Kong is being threatened by the Hong Kong National Security law.
On May 24th, a demonstration against the National Security Law (NSL) was held in Causeway Bay of Hong Kong, but the police force declared it illegal and ordered the dissolution. Despite the protests, the National People's Congress passed the Hong Kong National Security Law on May 28th with 2,878 votes in favor, one vote in opposition, and six abstentions.
The National Security Law is a law enacted in China that prohibits interference in the internal affairs of other countries in Hong Kong and establishes an agency in Hong Kong to enforce it. The core of Hong Kong's new law is a blanket ban on anti-government activities. That is why the bill if implemented, will make it impossible for large-scale protesters to protest such cases like the extradition law, which swept Hong Kong last year. Citizens are angry at the possibility of both violent and peaceful demonstrations being punished equally without distinction. Moreover, citizens are deeply dissatisfied with the fact that the bill is punishable for up to 30 years of instigation of treason, and that China is the main body to push forward the bill. This agenda is to break the one country two systems, a political system in which the two political systems coexist conditionally within Hong Kong's designated area at the time of its return, so citizens express great antipathy. Hong Kong pro-democracy activists are also accused of instigating intervention in Hong Kong's internal affairs by foreign and domestic forces if Hong Kong's security law is passed.
Under the "Hong Kong People's Democracy Act" proposed within the United States in 2019, Hong Kong's self-governing level will be considered very low because the Hong Kong National Security Law has been passed, and Hong Kong’s special status will be deprived and it will be subject to punitive tariffs of 25 percent of U.S. export items like China. In addition, it will be impossible to enter and leave Hong Kong without a visa and instead, strict Chinese visa regulations will be applied. This increases the likelihood of multinational companies leaving Hong Kong, which could ultimately lead to an economic crisis.
An anonymous student from Hong Kong said, “Such unjustifiable law is damaging our democracy and putting the society in crisis. I am not sure when this terrible event will end, though one thing I can assure is that Hong Kong civilians will not surrender to this unacceptable enactment. To prevent further conflict, media, journals, and people must tell the truth and reveal what is wrong about Hong Kong NSL.”
By Yoo Chan-Ju, Cub Reporter