(RepublicanPress.org) – Hong Kong and China have wrestled over the city’s control since the return of the territory from the United Kingdom to China in 1997. China has taken measures to increase its authority over the region in the wake of violent anti-government protests that ravaged the city in 2019.
Reuters reported on February 24 that Hong Kong officials plan to announce a bill requiring community-level district council members to pledge an oath of allegiance to the city’s mini-constitution. However, the pledge is little more than a loyalty oath to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
When Beijing says "true patriots" should run Hong Kong, it's about "patriots with CCP characteristics", i.e. true CCP sycophants. Hong Kongers must "learn":
they are not allowed to speak for themselves, it's the CCP that decides who speaks for the people. https://t.co/nQMRGLAo2L— Reinhard Bütikofer (@bueti) February 24, 2021
The head of Hong Kong’s Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau, Eric Tsang, said the law equated “patriotism” with “love” for CCP leadership.
Under the proposed law, any council member failing the loyalty test would be formally disqualified by a judge and suspended from office. Additionally, they would be banned from contesting future elections for five years.
Carrie Lam, Hong Kong’s Chief Executive, endorsed the move, stating the law was necessary to halt future hatred of China and to sustain the joint rule of the city by local officials and Beijing, Communist China’s capital city.
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