On Sept. 24, the Hong Kong government published a "Consultation Document on Proposals to Implement Article 23 of the Basic Law." This document is a milestone on the way to substantive sinicization of Hong Kong.
Article 23 of the Basic Law, which was passed in 1990, states: "The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region shall enact laws on its own to prohibit any act of treason, secession, sedition, subversion against the central people's government, or theft of state secrets, to prohibit foreign political organizations or bodies from conducting political activities in the region, and to prohibit political organizations or bodies of the region from establishing ties with foreign political organizations or bodies."
This article eliminates almost all room for the activities of political organizations in Hong Kong because globalization is impossible without contacts with foreign countries. According to this article, the slightest political nuance in Hong Kong's human rights, labor union and religious organizations can earn them legal punishment. Senior government officials led by the then-chief secretary for administration Anson Chan (陳方安生) opposed creating such a law despite constant pressure from Beijing. However, Chan was forced out by Beijing last year and such legislation can no longer be avoided.
The consultation document sets out seven articles regarding related criminal acts. The document stipulates that sedition, treason or secession may lead to a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. What's more, sedition is dependent on "intent", which is a very subjective matter. It is obvious that the rule of man is set to replace the rule of law.
The document states that unauthorized publication of classified documents that may harm the relationship between Hong Kong and China is in violation of the law and a "theft of state secrets." This article has led to an uproar among the news media. The document further stipulates that the secretary for security has the power to outlaw Hong Kong groups affiliated with "proscribed organizations" in China that "endanger national security," or those which "organize or support the activities of proscribed organizations." This article is aimed at the Falun Gong.
Article 23 of the Basic Law only proscribes foreign contacts, but the document goes one step further and proscribes contacts within the country. This is a threat to the "Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Democratic Movements in China" which began operating around the time of the Tiananmen demonstrations in 1989.
Further, the crimes of secession includes an "extra-territorial effect," which means that if any permanent resident in Hong Kong, even when outside of the territory, sympathizes with or supports separatist forces in Taiwan, Tibet, or Xinjiang, they will be punished upon returning to Hong Kong. It also stipulates that "failure to report a known offence of treason" is a crime. This kind of "crime by implication" only exists in extreme feudal states and dictatorships. Now Hong Kong is set to join their ranks.
The document also suggests that police carrying out investigations involving Article 23 have "emergency entry, search and seizure powers" and will not need a search warrant issued by a court of law. This is the kind of arbitrary police raids and confiscation of assets known in Chinese as chaojia (抄家), a tactic in which the Communist Party of China excels and which causes legal discipline to all but vanish. From now on, Hong Kong will live in the shadow of white terror.
The biggest promoter of the legislation is the very ambitious Secretary for Security Regina Ip (葉劉淑儀), who once was called a "female Hitler" by a university student. Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa (董建華) himself has also come out to cheat the people of Hong Kong. They claim that Hong Kong's human rights and freedom will not suffer in the least when compared to the past.
The late Chinese paramount leader Deng Xiaoping (
There are two reasons why Beijing and Hong Kong chose this time to create Article 23 legislation. One reason is that Hong Kong's economy is in the doldrums, so the people are preoccupied with the economy, not politics. The other reason is that the US and the UK are busy with their anti-terrorism campaign and are not interested in Hong Kong's situation.
Western media, however, have already begun reporting this issue. The Asian Wall Street Journal has run some very critical editorials of Tung's actions, calling for the governments of the US, the UK and other countries to speak up for the people of Hong Kong "at this most vital moment of danger facing the human rights and freedom of the people of Hong Kong."
The new US Consul General to Hong Kong, James Keith, has already requested that Hong Kong citizens make their opinion more heard. He has also made it clear that the US will not ignore this matter. But if US President George W. Bush were to apply some pressure on Chinese President Jiang Zemin (江澤民) when they are eating their barbecue at Bush's ranch later this month, that might be a bit more efficient than the citizens of Hong Kong making their opinion heard.
Paul Lin is a political commentator based in New York.
Translated by Perry Svensson
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