National Security Law in Hong Kong and How Totalitarianism Destroys Democracy

In March, a law on national security was adopted in Hong Kong – now, treason there will be punished with life imprisonment. They also introduced a new crime of “external interference,” and spying will be severely punished – up to 20 years in prison. This way, China is trying to keep the region under its control and fully assimilate it into its system. The “leader” of the region, John Lee, even stated that the new law is intended to protect the residents of Hong Kong from such “dangerous” movements as “Hong Kong independence.”

China acquired Hong Kong under its administration in 1997 from Great Britain on the condition that for the next 50 years, the state, and the region would live under different administrations, the so-called “One Country, Two Systems.” Hong Kong became an autonomy of China, but retained its democratic regime. This was supposed to last until 2047, but China decided otherwise.

Since 2019, China has been actively assimilating Hong Kong. At that time, they announced the adoption of an extradition law, which sparked protests throughout the region. Critics of the law believed that it would allow residents of the region to be extradited to mainland China for trial. Given the difference in political regimes between the autonomy and mainland China, this fear was justified.

The United States even passed the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act. The US eased visa restrictions for Hong Kongers fleeing arrests and political persecution by China; imposed sanctions on those involved in suppressing basic freedoms in Hong Kong, including those involved in extraditing individuals to mainland China for detention or trial in connection with their internationally recognized rights; and also banned the export of rubber bullets and police gear to Hong Kong.

In October 2019, the Hong Kong government rejected the extradition law. However, the situation in the region did not improve, and China did not relent from its intentions. The head of the regional administration, Carrie Lam, resigned, and her position was taken by John Lee, the Secretary for Security of the region, a supporter of the extradition law and a pro-Beijing politician.

In 2022, John Lee stepped down from his position as head of the administration to participate in the elections for the same position. The head is elected by an electoral committee composed of representatives of industries in the region. Electoral districts in Hong Kong are also not territorial but industrial. Industries ranging from textiles and transportation to medicine and education nominate their representatives to the committee, and they elect the regional administration.

China actively works with the electoral committee through restructuring industries, reducing disloyal members, increasing loyal participants, and simply bribing business representatives to vote in favour of Beijing.

In 2022, according to the rules of the committee, a potential candidate for the position of head of administration should have received support from a minimum of 188 committee members, and for election, at least half of their votes. John Lee received support from 786 committee members, and 1416 out of 1424 votes. Thus, the election consisted of only one candidate.

Region activists protested against Lee's election. They declared these elections “unfair” and stated that their results should not be recognized.

The new administration under John Lee actively began integrating the region into mainland China. They developed a new test for teachers in schools to assess their knowledge of basic laws and, in reality, their loyalty to the administration and Chinese policies. Additionally, Lee promised to change the fundamental nature of education to a “patriotic” one, which would teach children to “respect and protect national security.” In 2023, Hong Kong adopted the Chinese law “On Patriotic Education” into practice.

The administration enacted a law that required doctors to work for a certain period in public hospitals before being allowed to choose their workplace independently. This act caused panic among the medical sector in the region, leading to the emigration of some professional doctors to Japan and even the United States. However, John Lee did not retreat from integrating medical professionals into the state system, and later, dentists and lower-level medical staff were added to the list of those obligated to adhere to this requirement.

In 2023, the use of CBD was criminalized in Hong Kong, adding cannabidiol to the list of hard drugs alongside heroin. China banned cannabis in 2022.

This policy is the primary reason for emigration from Hong Kong. Since the protests, the region has been losing nearly one percent of its population each year. Additionally, the region is losing freedom of speech as media outlets are shut down or censored, and the administration removes political and political science books from libraries and bookstores due to their “harmful ideology.”

The Lee administration accuses critics of engaging in “soft resistance,” and the new security law suggests that punishment for such resistance will become harsher. China is assimilating the autonomous region regardless of protests and agreements, destroying democracy through political methods and subtle agreements rather than brute force. For now.