An investigation by HKFP reveals an extensive lobbying effort by the Hong Kong government to persuade politicians in Washington not to support the act which paved the way for sanctions to be imposed on senior officials in the city, including Chief Executive Carrie Lam.
Lobbying firms in the US were paid at least HK$84 million by the Hong Kong government to arrange meetings between city officials and US politicians between 2014 and 2020 to discuss topics such as the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act (The Act), an HKFP investigation has found.
Read in full: Inside the Hong Kong govt’s multi-million dollar US lobbying operation
US lobbyists were paid close to HK$84 million (US$10.8 million) in contractual fees between 2014 – when the bill which led to the act was initially introduced in the US – and 2020 by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC). The actual amount spent could be even higher when expenses and incidental costs are taken into account.
Together with expenditure by its own offices in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, the agency spent a total of HK$458 million (US$58.9 million) on its overall US operations, data compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics showed.
The HKTDC is a statutory body led by business leaders and senior government officials.
‘Foreign Agents’
To operate legally in the US, the HKTDC and lobbying firms doing its bidding are required to register as “foreign agents” under the Foreign Agents Registration Act. The wide-ranging legislation requires foreign entities and individuals in the US to disclose their expenditure and activities that may influence any segment of the American public, whether they are political or not.
