Observer Worldview Extra: Losing liberties in Hong Kong (Excerpt)

Sunday December 8, 2002

Last weekend Martin Lee stepped down as leader of the Democratic Party of Hong Kong. He's not going very far - he'll remain an elected member of Hong Kong's Legislative Council. But his departure from the front lines is a blow to democratic campaigners in Hong Kong, and it has come at perhaps the most crucial time since the territory was handed back to China in 1997.

Lee is a staunch supporter of democratic freedom and civil liberties, and has been battling against the increasing encroachment into the autonomy of Hong Kong by the central Chinese government for the past five years. In recent months that fight has looked increasingly lost, as Hong Kong's executive prepares to introduce a raft of new anti-subversion measures which critics fear will stifle free speech and criminalize anti-government demonstrations.

Under the new laws, unveiled in September but put into review until the end of this month, people found guilty of treason, secession, subversion and sedition face life imprisonment. In addition, those found to have published seditious material will face a seven-year jail sentence and a fine of 5,000, and those found guilty of inciting violence or public disorder could also be jailed for up to seven years.

Civil liberties campaigners believe that the new laws could be used to punish critics of the Chinese government, journalists and newspaper editors who publish anti-government stories, and political dissidents or religious groups outlawed by mainland China. Rumours also surfaced on Monday that a number of foreign banks were discussing scaling back their operations in Hong Kong because of fears that the new laws would restrict the flow of information in the territory.

Opposition to the new laws forged an unlikely alliance this week between the head of the Hong Kong Roman Catholic Church, Joseph Zen, and members of the [...] spiritual movement, Falun Gong, which is outlawed in mainland China.

Bishop Zen told reporters on Tuesday that his church would fight against proposed changes, which he believed could be used to restrict religious freedom in the territory. Many Hong Kong Catholics donate money to the underground Catholic Church in mainland China. Under the new laws, such association with an outlawed group could be criminalized. The Bishop also spoke out for Falun Gong practitioners, saying that the new law threatens their freedom to practice in Hong Kong, and could lead to the group being outlawed there as it is in China. Allying himself with Falun Gong is a bold step for the bishop. [...] In mainland China its proponents (believed to number more than 100 million) are routinely imprisoned for long periods and suffer heavy persecution.

As if to underscore the changing climate in Hong Kong, 16 Falun Gong practitioners were arrested there in August for causing a public disturbance after they protested outside China's central office in the territory. The judge in the case claimed that their arrest had nothing to do with pressure from Beijing, but the prosecution did nothing to steady the nerves of the group. Now with Martin Lee gone, and the period of consultation almost up for the new laws, Bishop Zen faces tough times if he really does intend to fight their introduction. However, if civil liberties are to be guaranteed in the future for Hong Kong's seven million residents, it is a fight worth having.

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http://observer.co.uk/worldview/story/0,11581,856271,00.html