The US on Friday imposed sanctions on six officials, including Hong Kong’s sole representative to China’s top lawmaking body, over mass arrests of pro-democracy advocates in the territory.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, in the latest of a slew of sanctions imposed in the final days of his term, and following political violence in Washington, called the crackdown in Hong Kong “appalling.”
“We condemn PRC actions that erode Hong Kong’s freedoms and democratic processes, and will continue to use all tools at our disposable to hold those responsible to account,” Pompeo said in a statement, referring to the People’s Republic of China.
Photo: Reuters
Among those hit by sanctions was Tam Yiu-Chung (譚耀宗), the Hong Kong delegate to the Chinese National People’s Congress Standing Committee, and You Quan (尤權), the vice chairman of the Chinese government group that handles policy for Hong Kong and Macau.
Three Hong Kong security officials were also hit by the sanctions, which restrict any US transactions with them.
China last year imposed a draconian National Security Law in Hong Kong after widespread and sometimes violent protests that sought to preserve the territory’s separate freedoms.
The US earlier imposed sanctions on Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam (林鄭月娥), who later acknowledged that she has had to rely on cash and can no longer hold a bank account.
Pompeo earlier threatened US action after the rounding up on Wednesday last week of more than 50 people in Hong Kong, including a US lawyer, John Clancey, who worked for a law firm known for taking up human rights cases.
Hong Kong yesterday hit back at the US, slamming the sanctions as “insane, shameless and despicable.”
The Hong Kong government in a statement expressed “utmost anger” and denounced the “coercive measures,” which it said were Washington’s latest attempt to intervene in China’s internal affairs and obstruct the territory’s effort to safeguard national security.
“The US government has exploited every incident and excuse to make slandering remarks about the National Security Law,” a government spokesperson said in a statement.
“We cannot help but suspect that the National Security Law has touched a nerve of those foreign or external forces,” the spokesperson added.
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
RSS