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By Holmes CHAN and Xinqi SU HONG KONG, March 19, 2024 (AFP) – A fresh set of national security offences is coming into force in Hong Kong, after lawmakers unanimously approved a new law on Tuesday. The fast-tracked legislation — commonly referred to as Article 23, after a section of the city’s mini-constitution — is the Chinese finance hub’s second national security law. The first, imposed by Beijing in 2020 following the quashing of citywide […]
HONG KONG, March 19, 2024 (AFP) – Hong Kong legislators unanimously passed a new national security law on Tuesday, introducing penalties such as life imprisonment for crimes related to treason and insurrection, and up to 20 years’ jail for the theft of state secrets. The law, which the United States, Britain and the European Union have warned could further curtail freedoms in Hong Kong, was fast-tracked through the legislative process. “Today is a historic moment […]
By Xinqi SU and Holmes CHAN HONG KONG, March 8, 2024 (AFP) – As Hong Kong fast-tracks a new national security law, the legislation and questions about its implementation have raised fears among the business community. The draft bill, introduced at the city’s legislature on Friday, includes major offences such as treason and insurrection, which could be punished with life imprisonment. The government has said it intends to pass the bill as soon as possible […]
HONG KONG, March 8, 2024 (AFP) – Hong Kong on Friday unveiled a new national security law draft bill that includes life sentences for offences such as treason and insurrection. The homegrown bill is set to become the city’s second national security law following the one Beijing imposed in 2020 after quashing huge and sometimes violent democracy protests. The “Safeguarding National Security Bill”, formally introduced Friday morning, lists five new categories of offences — treason, […]
LONDON, Feb 29, 2024 (AFP) – The United States and Britain on Wednesday criticized the Hong Kong government over a proposed new national security law, saying it would curtail freedoms in the finance hub. Massive pro-democracy protests rocked Hong Kong in 2019, bringing hundreds of thousands of people to the streets to call for greater freedoms. In response, Beijing imposed a national security law to punish four major crimes — secession, subversion, terrorism and collusion […]
HONG KONG, Feb 28, 2024 (AFP) – Hong Kong has axed all property transaction taxes in a bid to revive the depressed housing market, finance minister Paul Chan said in his annual budget speech Wednesday. The finance hub’s economy was initially buoyed by China’s post-pandemic reopening but recovery has since slowed and residential property prices are at a multi-year low. Chan said Hong Kong would scrap three types of stamp duty with immediate effect, reversing […]
HONG KONG, Feb 24, 2024 (AFP) – Dior has postponed a fashion show set to be held in Hong Kong next month, a city official confirmed Saturday, dealing a blow to the financial hub’s ambitions to boost its economy through major events. Hong Kong is courting top international celebrities and brands in the hope of rebooting its reputation, which had been battered by years of social unrest and strict pandemic curbs. The Dior fashion show […]
BEIJING, Feb 9, 2024 (AFP) – Lionel Messi’s no-show at a match in Hong Kong has triggered a surge of online outrage in the city and in mainland China, with the football superstar accused of seeking to embarrass Beijing — or even engaging in a sinister foreign plot. The Argentine ace and his team Inter Miami sparked fury in Hong Kong from fans on Sunday when he did not play in a friendly, citing injury. […]
HONG KONG, Feb 6, 2024 (AFP) – A Hong Kong airport ground worker was killed when he was hit by a towed aircraft on Tuesday, authorities said, a rare incident that prompted an arrest for dangerous driving. The unnamed victim, a 34-year-old Jordanian national working in Hong Kong, is believed to have been riding in the passenger seat of a tow truck when he fell out of the vehicle and hit by the plane being […]
HONG KONG, Dec 21, 2023 (AFP) – A veteran unionist in Hong Kong was jailed Thursday for six months for “perverting the course of justice” by removing a phone and laptop from her sister’s residence before a police search to investigate a national security offence. The defendant Marilyn Tang, 63, and her elder sister Elizabeth, were both pioneers in Hong Kong’s pro-democracy union movement and active since the 1980s. Elizabeth was arrested in March over […]
By Xinqi SU and Holmes CHAN HONG KONG, Dec 18, 2023 (AFP) – Pro-democracy tycoon Jimmy Lai went on trial in Hong Kong Monday on national security charges that could see him jailed for life, with the United States and Britain demanding his release. Lai, 76, is accused of “collusion” with foreign forces under a sweeping national security law that Beijing imposed on the finance hub in 2020. He is the founder of the now-shuttered […]
BEIJING, Dec 15, 2023 (AFP) – China lashed out at Britain and the United States Friday after they condemned Hong Kong police for offering bounties for information leading to the capture of five overseas activists. Hong Kong authorities said Thursday that the five, who fled the city after Beijing imposed a national security law in 2020, would be pursued “till the end” and offered HK$1,000,000 ($128,000) bounties for help catching them. The move was strongly […]
