Former Hong Kong Public Chiropractic Secretary General Wong Chi-fung, former Chairman Lam Long-yen, and former member Chow Ting were sentenced to 7 to 13.5 months in prison on charges of participating in the siege of police headquarters last year, prompting strong bipartisan condemnation in the U.S. Congress. Despite the divisive political climate in Washington, Democratic and Republican members of both chambers of Congress have expressed shock at the verdict and criticized it as a “mockery of justice.
A Hong Kong court ruled Wednesday (Dec. 2) that Huang Zhifeng, Lin Langyan and Zhou Ting were guilty of inciting, organizing and participating in an unauthorized assembly for their involvement in the June 21 siege of police headquarters. The magistrate said that the case was premeditated, the three defendants were active participants, the assembly was of a certain size, and the slogans called by the demonstrators challenged the police authority.
Pelosi: Outrageous verdict
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), who has spoken out repeatedly for protesters demanding democracy and freedom in Hong Kong, said in a statement Wednesday that the ruling is appalling.
“This unjust verdict is clear evidence that Beijing will stop at nothing to suppress dissent and destroy the freedom and true autonomy promised to Hong Kongers,” Pelosi said in the statement.
Pelosi also spoke of the bicameral and bipartisan nature of the U.S. Congress in expressing grave concern over allegations of improper treatment of Huang Zhifeng in prison, including his placement in solitary confinement. Pelosi said the U.S. Congress is concerned that the three men sentenced to prison could face additional charges in the future with longer sentences added to their sentences.
“The U.S. Congress has been a unified voice in defense of those oppressed by Beijing and in support of freedom, justice and true self-government for Hong Kongers,” Pelosi said. In closing her statement, Pelosi also called on the world to speak with one voice in condemnation of this unjust verdict and Beijing’s widespread attacks on the freedom of the people of Hong Kong.
Rubio Calls for U.S. Companies to Leave Hong Kong as Soon as Possible, Cheers for Zhou Ting, Who Spends Birthday in Prison
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), acting chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, told VOA on Wednesday that the verdict sends a clear signal.
“Beijing has full control of Hong Kong,” Rubio said, “and the U.S. and other companies should get out of there while they still can.”
Rubio went on to say that he believes Hong Kong is no longer in an environment that is as special and independent as it once was as an international financial center, and that he supports the U.S. government’s move to help U.S. companies pull out of Hong Kong.
“Today they’re targeting a political opponent, but tomorrow it could be a CEO of a company that has a dispute with a Chinese company. If I were a Western company, I wouldn’t want to do business there,” Rubio said.
Senator Rubio was one of the authors of the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, which took effect last November. The bill requires the U.S. State Department to submit an annual report to Congress assessing Hong Kong’s state of self-government and considering whether Hong Kong should continue to enjoy special treatment status accordingly.
Senator Rubio is also a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and Co-Chair of the U.S. Congress and the Administration’s China Committee. In a statement on Wednesday regarding the sentencing of Huang Zhifeng and three others, he said the verdict is a reminder of the courage and perseverance of Hong Kong people from all walks of life, and highlights the fact that the Hong Kong government has failed to keep its promises.
“If this is the way Hong Kong treats prominent democracy activists, the international community must pay close attention to how Hong Kong treats the thousands of others who are still waiting to appear in court, as well as those who have been prosecuted under the ‘National Security Law,'” Rubio said in the statement. “I stand with all the people of Hong Kong who are watching their long cherished freedoms being taken away by Beijing’s corrupt and cruel regime.”
Thursday was Zhou Ting’s 24th birthday, and Rubio tweeted, along with photos of his meeting with Zhou and others, “Zhou Ting is spending her 24th birthday unjustly in a Hong Kong prison, all because of the cruelty of the Chinese Communist Party.”
“We are with you, stay strong and don’t give up hope,” Rubio tweeted in a pep talk.
Hawley: Beijing is very brazen
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO), who visited Hong Kong during the street protests for democracy last October, told VOA that the verdict shows Beijing’s shamelessness.
“The message they’re sending to the world is that China has no intention of fulfilling its treaty obligations with respect to Hong Kong, like suppressing the fundamental freedoms of the people of Hong Kong with complete impunity, and that they intend to do the same thing in whatever area of power they have,” Hawley said. Shameless, very, very brazen.”
Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), chairman of the Senate Homeland Security Committee, also told VOA, “What Communist China is doing to Hong Kong is appalling, and we should be doing everything we can to support the brave people of Hong Kong who just want to be free. “
Bipartisan Leaders of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Condemn in One Voice: It’s a Mockery of Justice
Senator Jim Risch (R-ID), Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, condemned the sentencing of Huang Zhifeng, Zhou Ting, and Lin Langyan in a written statement on Wednesday.
Senator Risch went so far as to use the word “despicable” to describe the verdict. In a statement, he said, “Beijing’s excessive interference in Hong Kong has led to a complete erosion of the rule of law, and the three activists and others should be immediately released and all charges dropped.
Senator Risch and Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ), the chief Democrat on the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee, met with a number of Hong Kong democracy activists, including Huang Zhifeng, in Washington last year.
In an interview with the Voice of America, Sen. Menendez called the verdict “a mockery of justice. “He is a peaceful advocate for civil rights in Hong Kong, and the world should speak up for them against this outcome,” Menendez said.
Senator Menendez said he believes the new administration, which will take office next January, will focus on Hong Kong issues.
“I think Biden will change the (current) tone, he’s already said he plans to be an advocate for human rights and democracy as long as it’s about human rights and democracy, and that will again be one of the pillars of U.S. foreign policy,” Menendez told VOA, “which has been the case during the Trump administration. That’s not the case. That’s why I think the Hong Kong issue is the number one option for the Biden-elected administration in speaking out for human rights and democracy.”
Legislators support asylum for Hong Kong people, but bill lags behind
Members of both parties in both houses of Congress have introduced four bills aimed at providing asylum to Hong Kongers oppressed by Beijing: the Hong Kong Refugee Protection Act, the Support for Victims of Communism in Hong Kong Act, the Hong Kong Safe Harbor Act, and this bill, the Hong Kong People’s Freedom and Choice Act.
The Hong Kong People’s Freedom and Choice Act was passed by the House Foreign Affairs Committee in early October of this year. However, no new developments have occurred since then.
The bill would provide “Temporary Protected Status” for Hong Kong people and separate Hong Kong from mainland Chinese immigrants in categories of immigration policy, while promoting international cooperation to provide protection for refugee status in Hong Kong, especially for those who played an important role in the protests. The bill also encourages like-minded allies to provide asylum to those who have suffered from Beijing’s oppression and to expedite the processing of politically persecuted Hong Kongers. The bill also encourages like-minded allies to provide asylum to Hong Kongers oppressed by Beijing.
With less than a month left in the current congressional session, the House of Representatives is expected to conclude its agenda next Friday and all members will return to their districts. If the bill is not sent to the full House for a vote before members leave Washington, it will mean that the bill must be reintroduced in the new Congress, which begins in January.
Although several members of Congress from both parties have indicated in response to VOA questions that they would be willing to support such an effort if the bill is successfully sent to the floor, the prospects for progress on the bill before Congress adjourns for the year-end recess are not good.
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