Following China’s passage of a sweeping national security law, Hong Kong police have charged dozens of pro-democracy protesters with security crimes. The security law delineates criminal actions to be any subversive action undermining the Chinese government, or measures toward secession, terrorism, or collusion with foreign powers. The arrested activists have been denied bail and face life in prison if convicted; they are accused of participation in an unofficial primary election, which authorities claim was a threat to national security as citizens were ‘attempting to overthrow the seated government’. The arrests come as part of Beijing’s crackdown on dissent in Hong Kong, following the massive pro-democracy protests in 2019 that had widespread ramifications on the city.
China is currently under scrutiny from democratic Western countries for their actions to undercut democratic procedures in Hong Kong, which are upheld by the “1 country 2 systems” status quo. A UN rights watchdog has stated that the measures taken by Chinese authorities under the security law is nothing more than an attempt to detain people for standard political participation. The situation is exemplative of the Chinese effort to consolidate its control and dominance over every part of its border and beyond. Mobilizing control over Hong Kong also ties into their continued efforts to claim Taiwan as its own, as China continues to work towards aggressive expansionist action.