Hong Kong’s new “Article 23” security law: Extending China’s shroud of secrecy over Hong Kong
A new security law, verdicts against Jimmy Lai and the Hong Kong 47, a court battle over censoring ‘Glory to Hong Kong’: In 2024, there will be good reasons to keep the world’s attention on China’s crackdown on Hong Kong, and I’ll be providing analysis and advocacy—both online and offline—for each and every development. Are you able to support my efforts? You can contribute to my work either via a subscription to this Substack or my Patreon. Only do so if you’re comfortable with the risks involved in supporting this movement. I’m grateful for your support.
Since Beijing imposed the notorious National Security Law on Hong Kong in July 2020, nearly three hundred of the government’s political opponents have been arrested, civil society has been silenced, dozens of media outlets have been shuttered, hundreds of thousands of people have fled the city for the UK and other democracies, and the economy has sputtered.
But in Beijing’s eyes, the NSL wasn’t enough. On Tuesday, Hong Kong’s Security Bureau (HKSB) released details of the long-anticipated new “Article 23” national security law. The law will supplement, not replace, the 2020 NSL. It will be passed into law locally this year. (The 2020 NSL, in contrast, was imposed directly by Beijing, though in practice Beijing is controlling the Article 23 process as well.) The specifics are contained in a 110-page “public consultation” document that commences a 30-day consultation period on the law.
Read the full opinion here
https://samuelbickett.substack.com/p/hong-kongs-new-article-23-security
