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The United States said on Monday it was gravely concerned about proposed amendments to Hong Kong laws that would allow suspects of many crimes to be extradited to mainland China, warning that such a move could jeopardize the special status Washington affords the territory under the 1992 Hong Kong Policy Act. The HKP Act allows the semi-autonomous territory to be treated as a non-sovereign entity distinct from China for trade and economic matters under US law.
Currently, the territory does not have an extradition agreement with mainland China. That appears about to change.
BACKGROUND
Britain returned control of Hong Kong to China in 1997 with an important stipulation: The city would partly govern itself for 50 years (until 2047) before fully falling under Beijing’s control. The expectation was that the city and the mainland would operate under the principle known as "one country, two systems." But in recent years, the Hong Kong government has gradually eroded civil liberties that have long set the semiautonomous city apart from the Chinese mainland.
SITREP
At the present time, tens of thousands of protesters have gathered in the Central Business District and Admiralty, with crowds growing around the Legislative Council Complex where a second reading of the proposed extradition law is to take place. On Sunday, the protests were estimated to have reached nearly one million people.
Thousands of riot police are currently deployed and violence is anticipated. Many roads in the Central Business District and Admiralty are blocked and tensions are high. The US Consulate in Hong Kong is urging American citizens to exercise caution, avoid the demonstration areas, and maintain a low profile.You can read the full Consulate Alert message here:https://hk.usconsulate.gov/sm-2019061101/[ Note when reading the message that it is already June 12th in HK. ].
LIVE COVERAGE
Narrated coverage can be found here:
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