Beijing appears to be using Hong Kong’s National Security Law to target “foreign forces,” and is continuing to change the territory’s governance and institutions to reflect those of mainland China, the Mainland Affairs Council’s (MAC) latest quarterly report said.
China is continuing to undermine Hong Kong’s autonomy and is beginning to target foreign organizations that operate in the territory, using the law Beijing imposed on Hong Kong nearly two years ago, the report said.
Citing an example, the report said that British nonprofit Hong Kong Watch was on March 4 approached by officials from Hong Kong’s National Security Department to remove content from its Web site that the department said contravened the national security legislation.
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It was the first report of a foreign organization targeted with the law, the report said.
Suppression of individual rights and freedoms accelerated in January with the first convictions in Hong Kong for publications contravening the law, it said.
In March, former Hong Kong Bar Association chairman Paul Harris left the territory after security officials warned him that he was allegedly in contravention of the law, the report said.
Although Hong Kong participates in international organizations separate from China, it supports the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) political goals, such as blocking Taiwan’s “meaningful participation in the WTO,” it said.
By demonstrating its need to act on behalf of the CCP, Hong Kong is showing that its ability to meaningfully participate independently in international organizations is weakening, it added.
The report also cited Hong Kong government data as showing that the number of mainland Chinese and foreign companies registered in the territory is increasing, despite overseas companies leaving — indicating that Chinese investment in Hong Kong is growing.
Last year, 9,049 foreign and Chinese companies were registered in Hong Kong, compared with 9,025 companies the previous year.
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