Press Release
Rep. Bera Statement on British Judges Withdrawing from Hong Kong's Highest Court
Washington, DC,
March 31, 2022
WASHINGTON, DC – Representative Ami Bera, M.D. (D-CA), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia, the Pacific, Central Asia, and Nonproliferation, today issued the following statement in response to news of two British judges withdrawing from Hong Kong's highest court.
Representative Ami Bera, M.D. (D-CA), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia, the Pacific, Central Asia, and Nonproliferation, today issued the following statement in response to news of two British judges withdrawing from Hong Kong's highest court.
"The departure of the two British judges from Hong Kong's highest court regrettably underscores the degradation of the independent judiciary system in Hong Kong since the enactment of the National Security Law in 2020. Under "one country, two systems," Hong Kong's legal and democratic institutions underpinned the city's reputation as a trustworthy financial partner and center of international business. The resignation of the two British judges is not only evidence of the level of erosion of Hong Kong's autonomy, but also an indictment against the Chinese Communist Party and the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative region, which have for years sought to tighten their control over the people of Hong Kong. The United States will continue to support the Hong Kong people and the rights and freedoms promised to them in the Sino-British Joint Declaration and the Basic Law." |