Extradition Bill

Tasnim A. Bhuiyan :
After ongoing protests for more than three months in Hong Kong, revoking the Extradition Bill that sparked this protest movement is not enough to stop it. April of this year the government of Hong Kong introduced an Extradition Bill which meant criminal suspects in Hong Kong would be extradited to China and be subjected to Mainland China’s judicial system. What was supposed to fix a loophole in the legal system of Hong Kong has sparked mass protests. Organizers of the protests say that in China’s legal system no fair trial is guaranteed in Mainland China. Critics of the bill feared that this would undermine the legal freedom of Hong Kong and its people as well as put dissidents at risk.
On 9 June around one million people rallied to the government headquarters to show their opposition towards the bill. On 4 September Hong Kong’s leader Carrie Lam said that her government would revoke the controversial bill, requesting protesters to end their actions. However the nature of the protests has changed and it is no longer just about the Extradition Bill.
In 1842 Hong Kong was ceded to the British by China, in 1997 it was given back to China, an important condition was that for 50 years after the handover (till 2047), this former British Colony would be run under a system called, “One country, two systems”. Which meant Hong Kong would have a high level of autonomy, its own judiciary system and a legal system which was separate from mainland China’s except in the cases of defence and foreign affairs. About one-third of Hong Kong’s population joined the protests which is why it was able to have such an impact.
Protesters are now demanding full democratic rights, they want to be able to elect their own leader instead of having one appointed by the central Chinese government, an independent investigation into the alleged police brutality and an official pardoning for all the protesters that have been arrested. Many argue that the freedom given to Hong Kong is on the decline and the people of Hong Kong know that 2047 will come eventually, they just don’t want it to happen now. The autonomy of Hong Kong after 2047 is unclear, since that’s when the freedoms given to Hong Kong under the Basic Law (Hong Kong’s mini Constitution) expires.
Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam has responded to these requests on various occasions. She has insisted that ‘the bill is dead’ and that pardoning protesters goes against the rule of law. As for the matters of police brutality, her government believes this will be best handled by the existing Independent Police Complaints Council (IPCC). Finally, regarding universal suffrage, she has agreed that this was a right given to the people of Hong Kong under the Basic Law and further discussions are required.
Introducing this bill has made Lam very unpopular among the people of Hong Kong. Protesters want Carrie Lam to step down claiming that her and her government are pro-Beijing. This comes as no surprise since in Hong Kong, the ordinary citizens do not get to vote who their leader will be instead it is done by an election committee, where majority of the people are said to be pro-Beijing. Even though Lam claims to be ‘politically independent’ many claim that the decisions taken by her does not give Hong Kong the autonomy that it has a right to receive under the Basic Laws.
Beijing will not let Carrie Lam step down, even if she wants to, as any change in leadership, may lead to further instabilities, toughening the situation for the Chinese government and their authority. Even though there was a leaked voice recording, of her claiming she would resign if she could. Lam later stated in an interview that she has no plans to step down as the Chief Executive of Hong Kong.
(Tasnim A. Bhuiyan, currently enrolled at a part-time Distance Master of Laws Program offered by Leeds Beckett University, England and conducted by LCLS (South) in Dhaka)