(Newswire.net — November 23, 2019) — Beijing – China is urging US President Donald Trump to veto a law that upholds human rights in Hong Kong, approved yesterday by the US Senate, the Times reports.
Beijing threatened the US with “strong countermeasures” if the bill passes.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said Hong Kong’s human rights and democracy law undermines China’s as well as US interests in the semi-autonomous territory.
“We urge the U.S. to grasp the situation, stop its wrongdoing before it’s too late, prevent this act from becoming law (and) immediately stop interfering in Hong Kong affairs and China’s internal affairs,” Geng said at a daily news briefing.
The US president promised “to take a very good look at it.”
The law stipulates that each year the United States affirm a high degree of Hong Kong autonomy to justify the special trade status of this Chinese territory, as well as sanctions on Chinese and Hong Kong officials if they are to suppress freedoms.
The US Senate had previously approved a bill to uphold human rights in Hong Kong after months of violent protests in the territory.
“Hong Kong Law on Human Rights and Democracy”, as reported by AP news agency, is now going to the House of Representatives.
Republican Senator Marco Rubio said the bill would send a message of support to Hong Kong residents, who have been protesting for months with demands for basic freedoms despite strong Chinese government oppression.
Hong Kong was under UK rule for decades, thus it is no surprise the old empire wants it back. Chris Patten, the last British governor of Hong Kong, has warned that China’s threat to overrule the Hong Kong judiciary represents a dramatic threat to the autonomy of the region and may damage its chances of remaining a thriving financial centre, the Guardian reports.
The British protests came as Republicans in Washington predicted that Donald Trump would sign a bill passed by Congress last week. Signing the bill could open the way to new sanctions by the US against China amid the attempts of the White House to ease the tensions.