CV NEWS FEED // The Hong Kong government has demanded the U.S. to “stop maliciously interfering” in its affairs after U.S. legislators proposed a bill that would honor Chinese Catholic dissident Jimmy Lai.
On April 28, a Hong Kong government spokesman said the U.S. should “respect the basic norms governing international relations and stop maliciously interfering in the affairs of the HKSAR (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region),” according to the Hong Kong Free Press.
Rep. Chris Smith, R-NJ, and Rep. Tom Suozzi, D-NY, introduced the bipartisan bill on April 25 proposing to rename the Hong Kong Economic Trade Office’s street in Washington, D.C. “Jimmy Lai Way.”
Jimmy Lai, 76, is currently on trial in Hong Kong, accused of violating a controversial national security law. He is a citizen of the United Kingdom, Hong Kong businessman, and journalist who spoke out against the Chinese Communist Party in his newspaper, The Daily Apple. He was arrested and imprisoned in 2020 in Hong Kong.
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“Jimmy Lai is a man of faith and conviction, someone who fervently believed that Hong Kong’s prosperity and vitality were built on the rights promised to its citizens,” stated Smith on April 25. “For peacefully acting on this belief, he is arbitrarily detained.”
The legislation also calls for the U.S. Secretary of State to advocate for Lai’s release from prison.
Smith added in the statement, “For as long as the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office continues to operate in Washington, their new address will symbolize that this champion of freedom stands against their growing authoritarianism and human rights abuses.”
In the statement from the Hong Kong government, the spokesman argued that Jimmy Lai will receive a fair trial, and “that all cases are handled strictly on the basis of evidence and in accordance with the law.”
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