EU must not tolerate encroachment on autonomy
Hong Kong Security Law
Hong Kong Security Law
EU must not tolerate encroachment on autonomy
Ahead of tomorrow's (Thursday 18 June) plenary debate and vote on the resolution on the situation in Hong Kong and national security law (Friday 19 June), Greens/EFA, along with EPP, S&D, Renew and ECR, call on EU governments and the European Commission to make it clear to China's leadership that the EU is not prepared to respond with "business as usual" in the face of the violation of Hong Kong's autonomy and freedoms.
With this resolution the European Parliament is sending a clear signal in the run-up to the EU-China Summit on 22 June. President von der Leyen and President Michel should address Parliament's concerns at the EU-China Summit. The debate and resolution were put on the agenda at the initiative of the Greens/EFA group.
Reinhard Bütikofer, Chairman of the European Parliament's Delegation to China and Co-Chairman of the new Inter-parliamentary Alliance on China, comments:
"The imposition of the Security Law is primarily directed against the freedoms granted under the Hong Kong Basic Law and is designed to remove Hong Kong's autonomy. In doing so, Beijing is not only betraying all the promises made to the citizens of Hong Kong, but is also breaking its binding commitment under the 1984 Sino-British Joint Declaration. It is not enough to merely comment critically on this. The EU must also make it clear to the Chinese leadership that we will not accept this attack without consequence.
"The resolution identifies important diplomatic steps to be taken by the Commission and Member States. These include the appointment of a Hong Kong Special Representative by the UN Secretary-General, the establishment of a Hong Kong International Contact Group and consideration of the possibility of bringing this violation of international law before the International Court of Justice. The resolution also addresses possible economic consequences.
"It is necessary that the EU offers a safe haven, especially to young democracy activists from Hong Kong, who need it. An important step by the German Council Presidency would be the sanctions mechanism called for by the European Parliament in response to human rights violations by Chinese officials. It is clear that the EU-China Summit on the 22nd of June must not just be a light touch affair that brushes over these difficult issues."
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