China bars 2 Hong Kong lawmakers from office in unprecedented act

Hong Kong chief executive Leung Chun-ying at the government headquarters in Hong Kong, where he announces that he will implement the Chinese legislative panel’s ruling that bars two democratically eleShow more

BEIJING // China’s top legislature on Monday took the rare step of intervening directly in a local Hong Kong political dispute by effectively barring two legally elected separatist lawmakers from taking office, setting the stage for further turmoil in the semiautonomous city.

Beijing said any oath taker who does not follow the prescribed wording of oath, “or takes the oath in a manner which is not sincere or not solemn”, should be disqualified.

It came after rebel lawmakers Baggio Leung and Yau Wai-ching deliberately misread their oaths of office last month, inserting expletives and derogatory terms, and draping themselves with “Hong Kong is not China” flags.

Beijing’s ruling has denied the two a second chance to take their oaths after being disqualified on their initial attempt last month for using anti-China insults and foul language. It also circumvented Hong Kong’s courts, where the case is currently being heard, raising fears that the city’s independent judiciary is being undermined.

“The rule of law in Hong Kong is dead,” pro-democracy lawmaker Claudia Mo said. “It’s rule by decree. Hong Kong may need to live under fear from now on.”

Other lawmakers questioned where Beijing would draw the line and voiced concern that freedom of expression in politics would be further curtailed.

The National People’s Congress Standing Committee, the country’s top legislative panel, on Monday said talk of independence for Hong Kong is intended to “divide the country” and severely harms the country’s unity, territorial sovereignty and national security. It also said those who advocate independence for Hong Kong are not only disqualified from election and from assuming posts as lawmakers but should also be investigated for their legal obligations.

It is the first time Beijing has stepped in to block democratically elected Hong Kong lawmakers from taking office.

It is also the first time that Beijing has interpreted the Basic Law before a Hong Kong court has delivered a ruling on a case. In three of four previous interpretations, the NPC Standing Committee has delivered an opinion only after the Hong Kong government or the top court requested it.

The city’s leader Leung Chun-ying said he would fully implement Beijing’s ruling.

It is the latest chapter of political turmoil for the semi-autonomous city as fears grow that China is tightening its grip, and comes just over two years since Beijing issued an edict which plunged Hong Kong into months of protests.

That ruling in 2014, which said candidates for the Hong Kong leader must be vetted by a pro-Beijing committee, sparked massive rallies known as the “Umbrella Movement”.

Britain expressed concern at the ruling on Monday.

“We urge the Chinese and Hong Kong SAR Governments, and all elected politicians in Hong Kong to refrain from any actions that fuel concerns or undermine confidence in the ‘One Country, Two Systems’ principle,” the UK foreign office spokeswoman said.

Hong Kong is a former British colony which returned to Chinese rule in 1997 under a promise of “one country, two systems” for 50 years.

But there are deep concerns those liberties, enshrined in the city’s constitution known as the Basic Law, are at risk.

As frustrations build, an independence movement demanding a split from Beijing has emerged.

On Sunday, thousands took to the streets to rally against the anticipated announcement by the Chinese government. Police used pepper spray and batons against some umbrella-wielding demonstrators trying to reach Beijing’s liaison office after the march ended. Four people were arrested and two officers were injured, police said.

“For the young people this is going to definitely create a backlash. This is going to further fuel the independence movement,” said Samson Yuen, a politics lecturer at the Open University of Hong Kong. He added that Hong Kong’s young people must be feeling helpless because every protest or collective action they’ve taken “has run into a dead end.”

“Rationally for young people the only way out is to fight more radically,” he said.

* Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters