The One Country, Two Systems!

Hello readers! Everyone seems to be talking about the new security bill that has been passed by China in Hong Kong. But, what many don't know is that there is a backstory as to why this bill has been passed. Manifestly, there is a lot to read about China's sovereignty. Warning: It's a long read!

The History of Hong Kong

Hong Kong has been a part of China for centuries. But post the opium war, Britain ruled Hong Kong for over 150 years before handing it over to China in 1997 under one country, two systems policy where Hong Kong would have its own laws, currency, and a political system in place but the foreign affairs and defense affairs would be under China's control. Hong Kong was then, officially declared the Hong Kong Special Administered Region(HKSAR).

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The Basic Law

This is that document that preserves all the laws pertaining to the one country, two systems policy. This is also called as the mini-constitution of Hong Kong and is valid only for a period of 50 years, which is 2047(since 1997). The basic law promotes freedom of speech and freedom of assembly, unlike China. The basic law also states that no mainland official (China) can interfere with the political affairs of Hong Kong. But, China is constantly accused of influencing it. How? The leader of Hong Kong or The Chief Executive is elected by a closed committee and approved by China. In the legislative assembly, 50% of the seats are reserved for businesses across different sectors; the problem is all the businesses have some relationship with mainland China.

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The Protests

IMG Source: South China Morning Post. 

This is not the first time people of Hong Kong are protesting; there have been multiple protests since the handover in 1997. Also, this is not the first time this security bill has been raised. In the year 2003, the same bill was introduced but was shelved as it faced a lot of backlashes. In the year 2012, they protested as they wanted to change the curriculum taught in schools and, then in 2014, there were protests as they wanted a free election because China was accused of influencing the elections in Hong Kong. Also, protests erupted as people vanished from Hong Kong but surprisingly showed up in mainland China.

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The 2018 Murder

IMG Source: The New York Times. 

A couple had gone to Taiwan for a holiday. They checked in as a couple but the guy returned alone with his girlfriend's dead body, supposedly stuffed in his luggage. He confessed the murder after a month. Officials in Hong Kong took custody of the guy but couldn't try him in court as he committed the crime in Taiwan. And Taiwan could not try him in court either as there was no extradition agreement among the two countries. So the officials back at Hong Kong filed a case of money laundering as he spent cash from his girlfriend's credit card. But, for the murder, Hong Kong came up with an extradition bill that anyone who has committed a serious crime could be tried at courts in Taiwan or Hong Kong or China. The people of Hong Kong were against this, as it would become easier for China to not only arrest criminals but also pro-democratic leaders/activists. This also would mean the people who are detained would be interrogated according to the laws that persist in China which is against the Basic Law of Hong Kong (1 country 2 systems, Hong Kong has its own legal system). The extradition bill was eventually withdrawn and this was considered a political failure under Xi Jin Ping.

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The National Security Bill

Hong Kong is a democratic land and the people there are vocal about being an independent country which is quite evident from the series of protests since 2003. The failure of the extradition bill led to a lot of protests spanning over several months. These protests are considered a challenge to China's authority. In 2019, the president of USA Donald Trump signed an act* which allows the US to impose sanctions on anyone involved violations of human rights in Hong Kong. Now read the National Security Bill, I'm sure you'll be able to join the dots.

  *The Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, 2019

All the above information is obtained from a cumulation of sources. South China Morning Post - BBC - Aljazeera - CNBC - The New York Times

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