The Five Eyes Intelligence Sharing Group said that China has imposed new rules to ban its elected legislators Hong Kong It appeared to be part of a campaign to silence critics and have called on Beijing to reverse course.
The foreign ministers of Australia, Britain, Canada, New Zealand and the United States said in a joint statement, “We urge the Chinese central authorities to reconsider their actions against the elected legislature in Hong Kong and to immediately reinstate the members of the legislature.”
Hong Kong parcel Four opposition members of its legislature Last week, after Beijing granted city authorities new powers to curb dissent. The move sparked mass resignations by pro-democracy opposition MPs in Hong Kong.
It also raised more concerns about the level of autonomy for Hong Kong, promised under the “one country, two systems” formula when Britain ended its colonial rule and returned Hong Kong to China In 1997.
The five countries said, “China’s move is a clear violation of its international obligations under the legally binding Chinese-British joint declaration registered with the United Nations.”
Britain It is now considered that China has broken the Joint Declaration three times, Including with Hong Kong’s National Security Legislation introduced this year.
Washington has already imposed sanctions on Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam and other Chinese officials over the campaign, and has warned of further steps.
Hong Kong police said they arrested three former lawmakers Wednesday morning over the May and June events in which a foul-smelling liquid was thrown into the city’s legislature, a measure the police said was intended to harm.
China denies restricting rights and freedoms in the world financial center, but authorities in Hong Kong and Beijing moved quickly to quell dissent after anti-government protests erupted in June last year and plunged the city into crisis.
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