![[Hong Kong News]The sword refers to the rare request of 40 U.S. congressmen in Beijing; Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office | Central Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office | Guo Wengui | Military Adviser | Yu Jianming | Hong Kong Youth Association |](https://img.soundofhope.org/2023-01/gettyimages--1674762863974.jpg "[Hong Kong News]The sword refers to the rare request of 40 U.S. congressmen in Beijing; Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office | Central Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office | Guo Wengui | Military Adviser | Yu Jianming | Hong Kong Youth Association |")
Pointing at Beijing, 40 members of the U.S. Congress rarely make a request
40 senators of the U.S. Senate jointly proposed the latest resolution on Hong Kong on the 15th, reaffirming that the political situation in Hong Kong is deteriorating due to the “National Security Law”, and also urging the U.S. government to respond to the repression in Hong Kong with escalated actions, including rarely encouraging U.S. authorities to join forces Other countries have pushed for the removal of Hong Kong’s independent voting status in various international organizations.
The bill was spearheaded by veteran Senator Jim Risch, former chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Among the 100 U.S. senators, 40 senators have signed their support.
The resolution mentions that Hong Kong currently has voting rights independent of Beijing in many international organizations, giving Beijing a dual right to speak in some key organizations, including the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, the International Olympic Committee, the World Trade Organization, and even the special defense Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering. The resolution “encourages the United States, along with other governments, to pressure international organizations to deprive Hong Kong of its voting rights.”
The resolution condemns the wrongful use of political prosecution by the Beijing and Hong Kong authorities, and demands that the Hong Kong government immediately release all Hong Kong people prosecuted for crimes related to “incitement” and the “Hong Kong National Security Law”.
The resolution pays special attention to “Apple Daily”, criticizing the Hong Kong government’s suppression of it, which is like “theft directed by the state”, reflecting that Hong Kong’s regulatory and legal environment has regressed, and it should not enjoy the status of an international business center. U.S. President Joe Biden is required to exercise the power conferred by the “Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act” passed in 2019, and use sanctions and other means to hold those who undermine Hong Kong’s freedom and the rule of law accountable.
Reuters said that the bill is not legally binding, but it can send a strong message to the White House that members of the Senate are paying close attention to the China issue and will continue to respond.
Kwok Fung-yee, executive director of the Hong Kong Democratic Council (HKDC), said that the congressman’s move is “testing the waters” and looking for a consensus in other countries, which once again shows that the U.S. Congress is firm in Hong Kong’s struggle for justice.
Yan Baogang, the former director of Hong Kong Cable TV Finance and Economics, told Free Asia that once Hong Kong is removed from international organizations such as the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit, it will deal a considerable blow to Hong Kong as an international financial center. At that time, Hong Kong will really be like other cities in mainland China without financial services. , legal, and cultural unique roles.
Since the Hong Kong version of the National Security Law came into effect two years ago, under Beijing’s vigorous intervention, Hong Kong’s former freedom, democracy, and autonomy have rapidly faded. Many pro-democracy activists and dissidents have been imprisoned due to political prosecutions.
According to Hong Kong police statistics, as of the end of October last year, more than 10,000 people in Hong Kong were arrested for participating in the 2019 anti-revision movement, and more than 200 people were arrested for violating the “National Security Law”.
At present, the case of the 47 people in the primary election of the pro-democracy party and the standpoint news case are under trial. Li Zhiying’s case has been postponed until September, and the Stake Association is accused of inciting subversion.
Since January, the Biden administration has put forward several statements or bills on Hong Kong in just three months.
On the 17th of last month, the “Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office Certification Bill”, led by Congressman Marco Rubio and senators from both parties, pointed out that after the implementation of the “Hong Kong National Security Law”, Hong Kong’s autonomy under the framework of “one country, two systems” has ceased. Obliterated by the CCP’s increasingly severe intervention, calling for the revocation of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office’s diplomatic privileges and status in the United States.
In addition, CECC chairman, Republican Congressman Christopher H. Smith, and the committee’s co-chairman, Democratic Senator Jeff Merkley issued a statement on the 28th of last month, stating that the trial of 47 democrats reflected Hong Kong’s once respected Serious erosion of the rule of law, calling on President Biden to sanction prosecutors and others responsible for arresting and prosecuting the “Hong Kong 47” and other democracy advocates under the authority entrusted to him by the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act and the Hong Kong Autonomy Act official.
The CCP’s official media Xinhua News Agency announced on the 16th the so-called “Party and State Institutional Reform Plan”, no longer retaining the separate Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office of the State Council, but establishing the Hong Kong and Macau Work Office of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, “as the party’s central office.”
The plan mentioned that the brand of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office of the State Council will be retained, which means that the status of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office will be “upgraded” and directly under the responsibility of the Party Central Committee.
The plan also stated that the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China will undertake the responsibilities of investigation, research, overall planning and coordination, and supervision and implementation of the “one country, two systems” policy and the implementation of the central government’s overall governance power.
Pro-Beijing people said that this reform emphasizes the importance of Hong Kong affairs, and at the same time strengthens the party’s supervisory role, which is definitely a good thing for Hong Kong.
However, many netizens are against it.
Some netizens said, “From one country, one system to one party, one system”, “Wow, it’s 2047 all of a sudden!”
Some netizens also ridiculed, “The party has come forward directly, and it is no longer a cover-up in the name of the country.”
Some netizens ridiculed, “Strongly demand the abolition of the chief executive and change it to a municipality directly under the central government, so that it can better integrate into the overall situation of the country.”
On the eve of the two sessions of the Chinese Communist Party this year, Hong Kong media reported that the National People’s Congress of the Chinese Communist Party is expected to pass the largest government reorganization plan in ten years. At that time, the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office of the State Council of the Communist Party of China may separate from the State Council system and become the “Central Hong Kong and Macau Office” directly under the Party Central Committee.
According to the report, the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office will relocate from its current location on Yuetan South Street, Xicheng District, to the former Beijing Municipal Government site on Zhengyi Road, Dongcheng District, “closer to the central government in terms of location.”
Liu Ruishao, a current affairs commentator, said that the direct merger of the two organizations reflects the CCP’s further centralization of power.
Liu Ruishao emphasized that if the relevant reorganization becomes a reality, the role of the “two systems” will become increasingly blurred, which will inevitably attract criticism from Western countries and may further boycott Hong Kong.
The mysterious identity of Guo Wengui’s “Military Adviser” was revealed to have been active in the Hong Kong United Front Organization
Guo Wengui, a wealthy Chinese businessman in exile in the United States, was arrested in New York on March 15 on suspicion of defrauding US$1 billion. His co-accused, Yu Jianming (Kin Ming Je), is currently at large. Yu had been in the Hong Kong investment banking circle for a long time before, and served as an important position in the United Front Organization of the Communist Party of China. His background is extremely complicated.
According to comprehensive media reports, Guo Wengui was charged with 11 charges, including alleged wire transfer fraud, securities fraud, bank fraud and money laundering charges.
Guo Wengui, who appeared in court for the first time Wednesday afternoon, pleaded not guilty, was denied bail and is currently being held in a federal prison. A second hearing is expected on April 4. Prosecutors said that Guo Wengui could be sentenced to more than 100 years in prison if he is convicted of all the charges charged. Since Guo Wengui does not currently have US status and is a risk of absconding, prosecutors urged the judge not to grant him bail.
Guo Wengui’s “financier”, the fugitive Yu Jianming, was charged with 12 counts, one more than Guo Wengui for obstructing justice. If all charges are established, the combined sentence will be as high as 125 years.
According to a report by the Lu media Caixin on Thursday, 56-year-old Yu Jianming served as a member of the CPPCC Chongqing Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China in 2009 and served as an economic consultant for some provinces and cities.
From 2005 to March 2015, Jianming Yu served as Chairman and Managing Director of the Greater China Region at Macquarie, an Australian investment bank. Everyone in the Hong Kong investment banking circle knew that Yu Jianming had an important client named Guo Wengui.
In March 2015, Yu Jianming left the foreign investment banking industry where he had been in for more than 20 years, cooperated deeply with Guo Wengui, and became Guo Wengui’s “military advisor”.
During his stay in Hong Kong, Yu Jianming was active in several United Front Organizations of the Communist Party of China. He served as the founding vice president of the Hong Kong Chongqing General Association, the former executive chairman of the Hong Kong Youth Association, and the deputy head of the Hong Kong Volunteer Group. The “Protection of Universal Suffrage and Anti-Occupy Central Alliance” opposes Hong Kong’s democratic movements such as Occupy Central and Umbrella.
On the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the “Hong Kong Youth Association”, Zhang Xiaoming, director of the Liaison Office of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, several CCP officials stationed in Hong Kong, special commissioner of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Hong Kong, Song Ruan, deputy commissioner of the Commissioner’s Office, Major General Tan Benhong, commander of the Communist Army Garrison in Hong Kong, and the Hong Kong CCP Zheng Yaotang, deputy to the National People’s Congress, Lin Shuyi, president of the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions, and others attended the ceremony.
In February 2022, Yu Jianming, who immigrated to the UK, established the “Hong Kong People’s Association” in London, claiming to assist Hong Kong people holding BNO and other passports to settle in the UK and establish community relations. However, due to his strong pro-CCP background, the purpose behind the establishment of the association has been questioned.
The Social Democracy League was fined for displaying the QR code Report: Hong Kong people’s freedom of movement has been minimized
Chen Baoying, chairman of the Social Democracy League, and two volunteers were charged with 5 counts of “fundraising in public places without a permit” for displaying the QR code for receiving money on the pop-up stand at the street station earlier. The case was heard at the Kowloon City Magistrates’ Court on the 16th. Chen Baoying and a volunteer were fined HK$1,000 and HK$800 respectively, while the other was not found guilty.
The case refers to that on July 24, 2021, Chen Baoying and volunteer Tang Wanqing (63 years old) displayed multiple QR codes on two roll-up stands at Xixi Street Street Station, linking to the Patreon accounts of Liang Guoxiong, Wu Wenyuan and others.
In addition, on August 14 of the same year, the two, together with the defendant He Rongyi (52 years old), displayed a roll-up rack with multiple QR codes on the site.
In his ruling, the judge stated that at the street stand on July 24, words such as “donate money to support long hair” were written on the roll-up rack, and the QR code of the online fundraising platform was displayed, and he was ruled to have collected money. As for the street station on August 14, the prosecution failed to prove that it was a money-collecting activity, so he was not guilty of the crime.
Chen Baoying said that this verdict means that if all fundraising is not approved by the government, it will be regarded as “illegal”; even if you only distribute publications on the street, you may be convicted.
Regarding the government’s upcoming legislation on crowdfunding, Chen Baoying described it as a “spicy move”. I believe that there will be a greater blow to smaller political parties and civil organizations, and their living space will become narrower and narrower. She bluntly said that the law will “kill” them Invisibly, indirectly silence them.
On the same day, the international organization Civicus released the “2022 Threatened Citizen Power Report”, assessing basic freedoms and civic activities in 197 countries and regions around the world. Among them, Hong Kong’s rating was downgraded from the second-worst “Repressed” (Repressed) to the worst “Closed” (Closed), becoming one of the 27 regions with the worst freedom of citizen activities in the world.
The report criticized the Hong Kong government for using the “National Security Law” to suppress dissidents and organizations, criminalize peaceful protests, and force civil society and media organizations to shut down. National peer reasons.
The report covers 197 countries and regions around the world, 38 of which are rated as “Open”, 42 as “Narrowed”, 40 as “Obstructed” and 50 as “Obstructed”. 27 were rated as “Repressed” and 27 were rated as “Closed”. Taiwan is the only region in Asia that is rated as “open”.