Hong Kong passes strict new national security law — Radio Free Asia

UPDATED at 12:35 pm ET on March 19, 2024

Hong Kong’s Legislative Council on Tuesday passed a strict national security law known as Article 23 that makes treason, insurrection and sabotage punishable by up to life in prison, and that will likely widen an ongoing crackdown on peaceful dissent.

All 89 legislators voted in favor of the Safeguarding National Security bill, which will come into force on Friday, after lining up to sing the praises of the legislation at a special session attended by Chief Executive John Lee.

Critics say the ruling Communist Party has a broad and vaguely defined interpretation of many of the crimes in the bill, and that “national security” charges are already being used to prosecute people for peaceful dissent and political opposition in the city.

But Lee hailed the law as “a historic moment for Hong Kong,” saying it would prevent “infiltration and sabotage by hostile foreign forces,” which Beijing has blamed for several waves of mass pro-democracy protests since the 1997 handover to Chinese rule.

“We can effectively prevent ‘Hong Kong independence’ and violent destruction,” Lee told the Council. “We no longer need to worry about saboteurs … pushing Hong Kong into an abyss.”

The Council has lacked any political opposition since changes to the electoral rules, and many former pro-democracy politicians have fled a crackdown on public dissent under the 2020 National Security Law, while others are on trial for “subversion.”

The new law targets five types of offenses. It can punish people for “treason,” “insurrection,” and “sabotage” with life in prison, while those found guilty of “espionage” can face up to 20 years. Those found to have committed crimes linked to “state secrets” and “sedition” face up to 10 years in prison.

It also gives new powers to the police and courts to extend pre-charge detention for those held on suspicion of endangering national security to up to 16 days and to restrict detainees’ meetings with their lawyers. 

Under the law, the authorities will also have the power to revoke the passports of anyone who flees overseas and is considered an “absconder.”

‘Even possessing a book’

Maya Wang, Acting China Director at the New York-based Human Rights Watch, said the law will “usher Hong Kong into a new era of authoritarianism.”

“Now even possessing a book critical of the Chinese government can violate national security and mean years in prison in Hong Kong,” Wang said in a statement posted to her X account, calling for international sanctions on officials responsible for the legislation.

She also called on governments to protect Hong Kongers in exile from “Beijing’s long arm of intimidation and harassment.”

U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said the law had been rushed through the legislature despite “serious concerns” raised by U.N. human rights experts.

Türk said the “broadly defined and vague provisions” in the law could lead to the criminalization of a wide range of conduct protected under international human rights law, including freedom of expression, freedom of peaceful assembly, and the right to receive and impart information.

“This ambiguity is deeply troubling, given its potential misuse and arbitrary application, including to target dissenting voices, journalists, researchers, civil society actors and human rights defenders,” he said.

The broad definition of what constitutes an “external force” could have a further chilling effect on the work of human rights organizations and UN human rights agencies, he said.

“For such important legislation, with a significant impact on human rights to be passed without a thorough process of deliberation and meaningful consultation is a regressive step for the protection of human rights in Hong Kong,” Türk said.

The U.S. State Department last month said the legislation “risks compounding the 2020 National Security Law that has curtailed the rights and freedoms of people in Hong Kong.”

The legislation is mandated by Article 23 of Hong Kong’s Basic Law, which has provided a constitutional framework for the city since the 1997 handover to Chinese rule. 

It was recently rebooted after being shelved following mass popular protests against it in 2003.

Edited by Malcolm Foster and Luisetta Mudie.

Updates to add reaction and additional background.