US lawmakers urge sanctions against Hong Kong prosecutors for ‘undermining’ city’s rule of law
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“Such sanctions will be a tangible demonstration of the administration’s interest in the [People’s Republic of China] and Hong Kong authorities upholding their international legal obligations as well as international interest in the release of political prisoners,” the bipartisan group of 12 senators and representatives wrote.
The lawmakers included Senator Jeff Merkley, Democrat of Oregon, and Representative James McGovern, Democrat of Massachusetts, co-chairs of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC).
In their letter, the lawmakers pointed to sanctioning power provided to the administration in recent years by the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act and the Hong Kong Autonomy Act, which direct the US government to punish individuals deemed responsible for human rights abuses and the erosion of Hong Kong’s autonomy.
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“Regrettably, the freedom of speech is no longer possible without substantial risk,” the lawmakers wrote, accusing prosecutors of having become “complicit in undermining the city’s once robust rule of law”.
China routinely denies accusations that its policies have contributed to the curtailment of freedoms in Hong Kong, and has previously sanctioned staff on the CECC in response to US government actions regarding the city.
Liu Pengyu, spokesman for the Chinese embassy in Washington, said the lawmakers’ letter “openly defies Hong Kong’s national security law, grossly interferes in Hong Kong affairs and China’s internal affairs, and seriously violates international law and basic norms governing international relations”.
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Hong Kong’s economic and trade office in Washington did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the letter.