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UK warns China to respect Hong Kong's autonomy as Beijing pushes for laws that would 'crush dissent'

President Xi Jinping arrives for the opening session of the parliamentary session on Friday - Ng Han Guan/AP
President Xi Jinping arrives for the opening session of the parliamentary session on Friday - Ng Han Guan/AP

Downing Street warned China to respect the autonomy of Hong Kong after the Chinese Communist Party submitted plans for a controversial new law that could crush dissent in the former British colony.

The intervention from No 10 came as Hong Kong braced for its first mass pro-democracy protests for months after Beijing said it would bypass the city’s legislature to bring in sweeping new powers limiting freedom.

At the opening of its National People's Congress (NPC) this week, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said China would establish a "sound" legal system and enforcement mechanisms to ensure national security in Hong Kong and Macau.

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But pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong, as well as much of the international community, said the plan was an assault on Hong Kong's freedoms, with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo calling it a "death knell" for the city's high degree of autonomy.

Under the agreement signed when Hong Kong became a Chinese region, rather than a British colony, in 1997, China pledged to respect the "one country, two systems" principle, guaranteeing Hong Kong freedoms not seen on the mainland.

A Downing Street spokesman said: "We expect China to respect Hong Kong's rights and freedoms and high degree of autonomy. As a party to the joint declaration the UK is committed to upholding Hong Kong's autonomy and respecting the one country, two systems model."

Asked if the proposals breach that model, he said: "We are monitoring this closely and our immediate priority is to clarify the details of what is being suggested."

Dominic Raab, the foreign secretary, said he was "deeply concerned". In a joint statement with Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Marise Payne and Canadian Foreign Minister François-Philippe Champagne, he said China was "undermining the principle of ‘One Country, Two Systems’".

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, already at odds with China on a number of fronts including a blame game over the coronavirus pandemic and robust opposition to countries working with the Chinese company Huawei to develop 5G networks, condemned the move.

"Hong Kong has flourished as a bastion of liberty. The United States strongly urges Beijing to reconsider its disastrous proposal, abide by its international obligations, and respect Hong Kong's high degree of autonomy, democratic institutions, and civil liberties... We stand with the people of Hong Kong."

In Hong Kong itself, activists have called on the public to take to the streets, re-galvanising an anti-government movement that kicked off last year before fading against increasingly violent crackdowns and amidst public health concerns.

“Because of the coronavirus, many people may have rested and attended less protests, but now it’s time for us to stand up,” Agnes Chow, member of Demosisto, a pro-democracy political party, told the Telegraph. “People need to be ready to go on the street and fight against [the proposed law].”

The legislation would criminalise behaviour deemed as subversion, terrorism, separatism and foreign interference, “or any acts that severely endanger national security.”

It also allows the ruling Communist Party to set up agencies to “safeguard” national security, and requires the city’s chief executive to report regularly to the central government.

The national security proposal was tabled on the opening day of China’s rubber-stamp parliament meetings – an event heavy on political theatre and light on actual legislating.

Delegates are expected to vote in favour next Thursday, the last day of the annual meeting,  postponed for nearly three months due to the virus.

“The Chinese government is trying to suppress the democratic movement, and also suppress our connection with the international community ‘in the name of national security,’” said Ms Chow. “Hong Kong is at a very dangerous stage right now with the abuse of power.”

More anti-Beijing protests are expected in Hong Kong on Friday - Kin Cheung/AP
More anti-Beijing protests are expected in Hong Kong on Friday - Kin Cheung/AP

Rights groups have warned the steady erosion of freedoms in Hong Kong will be hard to turn back from, and could impact business confidence in the global financial centre.

Hong Kong's leader Carrie Lam, who is attending the NPC, vowed to "fully cooperate" with Beijing over the national security proposal and complete the legislation "as soon as possible".

Lam said national security laws to be drafted later by the NPC seek "to punish 'Hong Kong independence' and violent political elements that seriously harm national security".

In 2003, a similar national security bill introduced by the city’s legislature was scrapped after half a million protested against the proposal.

Major protests have flared periodically since, culminating in Hong Kong’s most intense unrest since the former colony was returned to Chinese rule in 1997, stretching over many months last year.

Demonstrations sparked over an extradition bill many saw as representative of an ongoing breakdown in the separation between the semi-autonomous legal & judicial systems and that of mainland China, where forced confessions are commonplace and courts see a 99.9 per cent conviction rate.

Over time, the movement mushroomed into a wider movement against Beijing’s encroaching influence.