US lawmakers condemn Beijing over Hong Kong election law

US lawmakers have rebuked China for passing a law that dilutes the proportion of democratically elected lawmakers in Hong Kong, as the Biden administration prepares to hold a high-level meeting with China.

China’s parliament on Thursday ratified the law, which will dilute the proportion of democratically elected lawmakers in Hong Kong. Washington has criticised it as another effort by Beijing to stamp out the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong.

Antony Blinken, US secretary of state, had accused China on Wednesday of trying to “quash” democracy in Hong Kong and threatened to impose more sanctions.

Bob Menendez, the New Jersey Democrat who heads the Senate foreign relations committee, said the US and its partners should impose costs on China over the law.

“Beijing’s latest move to crush Hong Kong’s autonomy is a clarion call to the international community,” he tweeted. “We must stand firmly with the people of Hong Kong & ensure China faces real consequences”.

Ben Sasse, a Nebraska Republican senator and possible 2024 presidential contender, said the law was another example of President Xi Jinping trying to “kill self-government” in the Asian financial hub.

“Chairman Xi is cracking down on anyone who resists his oppressive and genocidal regime,” Sasse said. “The American people must always stand with freedom lovers in Hong Kong and across the globe.”

Michael McCaul, the top Republican on the House foreign affairs committee, said that China’s “puppet legislature [had] destroyed the legitimacy of future elections in Hong Kong”.

He urged Blinken to warn Beijing that it would “not get away with crushing Hong Kong’s freedom and democracy” when he and Jake Sullivan, national security adviser, meet their Chinese counterparts in Alaska next week.

Andy Kim, a Democratic representative from New Jersey, said China was reneging on a pledge to maintain the “one-country, two-systems” model that underpinned the return of Hong Kong to China in 1997.

“Today’s actions are the final death blow to that promise and constitute the true end of democracy in Hong Kong,” Kim said. 

Ahead of the legislation’s passage, Carolyn Bartholomew, a Democrat appointed to chair the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission, urged the Biden administration to work with allies to push for the release of jailed pro-democracy activists and find ways — via visas or asylum — to help “those attempting to leave Hong Kong to escape political persecution”.

She added that they should take advantage of tools created by Congress and consider expanding the use of sanctions.

The election law comes after China last year passed a draconian national security measure that paved the way for a broad crackdown on the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong. The laws underscore how much China’s interventionist approach to the territory has sidelined the role of the local Hong Kong government. 

Carrie Lam, the city’s leader, said she was unable to answer some questions about the latest law because it was in the hands of the central government, saying, “I don’t have the details”. She denied that it was about making Hong Kong’s legislature less critical of the executive government or to “screen out” the opposition.

But Sophie Richardson, China director at Human Rights Watch, said it put “a stake through the heart” of democracy in Hong Kong and called for action. “You have heard the Biden administration say that they stand with the people of Hong Kong,” she said. “That is an important statement to make, but it needs to be turned into visible policy.”

Dominic Raab, the UK foreign secretary, said London would review the law for possible breaches of the 1984 Sino-British Joint Declaration, which lays out Hong Kong’s rights and freedoms after British rule.

He said the law was the “latest step by Beijing to hollow out the space for democratic debate in Hong Kong”. 

Yang Yirui, the top Chinese foreign ministry official in Hong Kong, on Monday summoned foreign diplomats and warned their countries not to retaliate.

“A very few countries, driven by political motives and ideological bias, have made irresponsible remarks and even threats to meddle with the . . . decision,” Yang said. “Their attempts are doomed to be futile.”

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