US and Canadian authorities’ calls for caution when travelling to Hong Kong following the enactment of new security legislation amounted to “political manoeuvres” and “twisted remarks,” the city’s government has said.
The Hong Kong government on Saturday “strongly condemned” the US and Canada after the two countries warned travellers about “arbitrary enforcement of local laws” under the Beijing-imposed national security law and the newly passed Safeguarding National Security Ordinance.
In the Saturday statement, a government spokesperson defended the laws, saying that the new legislation targets acts endangering national security “with precision” and “defines elements and penalties of the offences with clarity.”
Hong Kong also slammed Australia, the UK, and Taiwan after they updated their travel advisories in a similarly worded rebuttal last month.
According to the US Department of State, Hong Kong is a Level 2 destination, meaning travellers were advised to “exercise increased caution due to the arbitrary enforcement of local laws.”
“Following the Hong Kong SAR government’s enactment of its own Safeguarding National Security Ordinance on March 23, 2024, Hong Kong SAR authorities are expected to take additional actions to further restrict civil liberties,” an update made to the travel advisory last Friday read.
The US also cautioned against participating in demonstrations “or any other activities that authorities interpret as constituting an act of secession, subversion, terrorism, or collusion with a foreign country.”
Canada on Thursday advised travellers to exercise a “high degree of caution… due to the risk of arbitrary enforcement of local laws.”
The advisory said that the scope of the city’s security laws could include activities not considered illegal in Canada and that occurred outside Hong Kong, including social media posts.
It also said that journalists in Hong Kong faced restrictions in their work. “You should be particularly vigilant if researching or reporting on subjects critical of or sensitive to the government. You may face censorship,” it said.
In the Saturday statement, the Hong Kong said the city “has always welcomed ordinary travellers and businessmen” including those from the US and Canada. “They will not conduct acts and activities endangering national security and will not unwittingly violate the law, and therefore have no reason to be worried.”
“Only intruders trying to plunder and loot will not want Hong Kong to safeguard our country in accordance with the law,” the statement continued.
“The HKSAR Government strongly urges the relevant countries to stop their attempts to interfere Hong Kong in safeguarding national security in accordance with the law by deploying such political tactics as updating the so-called foreign travel advice,” it said.
Separate to the 2020 Beijing-enacted security law, the homegrown Safeguarding National Security Ordinance – known locally as Article 23 – targets treason, insurrection, sabotage, external interference, sedition, theft of state secrets and espionage.
It allows for pre-charge detention of to up to 16 days, and suspects’ access to lawyers may be restricted, with penalties involving up to life in prison. Article 23 was shelved in 2003 amid mass protests, remaining taboo for years. But, on March 23, 2024, it was enacted having been fast-tracked and unanimously approved at the city’s opposition-free legislature.
The law has been criticised by rights NGOs, Western states and the UN as vague, broad and “regressive.” Authorities, however, cited perceived foreign interference and a constitutional duty to “close loopholes” after the 2019 protests and unrest.
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