Britain returned Hong Kong to Chinese control in 1997 under a “one country, two systems” formula that gave the territory wide-ranging autonomy, including judicial freedom guided by a mini-constitution called the Basic Law.
The rift between Hong Kong and Beijing has deepened since Yau Wai-ching, 25, and Baggio Leung, 30, pledged allegiance to the “Hong Kong nation” and displayed a “Hong Kong is not China” banner during a swearing-in ceremony for the city’s legislative council in October.
Leading members of China’s parliament said on Saturday the two Hong Kong lawmakers-elect had damaged the territory’s rule of law and posed a grave threat to China’s sovereignty and security.
The Hong Kong Bar Association has said an intervention by Beijing now, while a local court was hearing the case, would deal a severe blow to the city’s judicial independence and undermine international confidence in Hong Kong’s autonomy. The oath-taking controversy made waves in the former colony, where the topic of independence from China was once regarded as taboo but has come to the fore since the pro-democracy protests in 2014 that failed to secure any concessions from Beijing.
(Sourced from agencies, Feature image courtesy:oneindia.com)
