Thread by @ASI

Our webinar 'Doing our Duty by Hong Kong' is LIVE now on Zoom and Facebook!

Tune in now to hear from
@joshuawongcf, @lisanandy, @TomTugendhat, and @benedictrogers

We'll be live tweeting along here!

facebook.com/watch/?v=30161…

First up is @benedictrogers, Chair and Co-founder of Hong Kong Watch giving us a rundown of the new security law being imposed by China.

It could become illegal to host this webinar as China cracks down on free speech and criticism of the regime.

Why should the UK care?

@benedictrogers says that not only does the UK have a legal commitment to Hong Kong via the Sino-British Joint Declaration, but also because Hong Kong represents freedom and liberty and threat to Hong Kong is a risk to world order

What should the UK do?

Three things: a diplomatic response, calling for a UN special envoy or special rapporteur on human rights; punitive response, including sanctions; launch a rescue element by extending BN(O) protections and further options, as a last resort.

.@benedictrogers notes the big difference now with the national security law and other restrictive measures that have been enacted is that this new legislation has been imposed by the Chinese legislature, not Hong Kong legislature.

This removes Hong Kong's legal autonomy.

Now we turn to Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee @TomTugendhat to give his views on the Joint Declaration and the firm duties which apply to the UK.

Tom says that BN(O) status is critical to provide some level of security for Hong Kongers so that they can enter into discussions with China.

Tom has launched the China Research Group to ensure that politicians are aware of the developments in China.

It will be very hard to have a global Britain without having a dialogue with China, but this will be difficult without a better understanding of internal Chinese politics

For example, Tom notes issues around Huawei and China's motivation for centralising the future of the internet that are not as widely known as they should be.

Domestic and foreign policy will need to be informed, and the China Research Group will aim to help

We now welcome Shadow Foreign Secretary @lisanandy

She welcomes the attitudes on this panel that seems to reflect a growing consensus towards relations with China

She notes that there is no global challenge that can be solved without the help of the Chinese government.

It is incredibly important to have a constructive dialogue but our relationship with China is also problematic in many ways.

.@lisanandy says it's not a question of a 'softer' or 'harder' approach towards China, but a constructive dialogue backed up by independence

The UK needs to create a third pole in between the US and China, so that the UK can speak to our own strategy and strategic independence

Otherwise, we will end up squeezed between two superpowers

@lisanandy calls for a 'coalition of the willing' with our democratic allies across the world to address foreign policy issues, including human rights

Our focus must be to not do harm to the people of Hong Kong - we need to create a better strategy with more strands

@lisanandy thinks that this can be done - defeatism has creeped in but we are an incredibly well connected country with high levels of soft power

If the UK is to have the moral standing and influence around the world that we'd like to have in Hong Kong, we must have a consistent approach and call out injustice across the world

.@lisanandy points out the flaws in relying on BN(O) status, including lack of support for children of BN(O) passport holders, and the millions of Hong Kongers who are ineligible for BN(O) passports

.@benedictrogers reiterates that whatever measures we do take are very focused on those responsible for the human rights and international law violations, and doesn't penalise Hong Kongers themselves.

.@lisanandy thinks that our attitudes towards China in the 2010s was shaped by the global financial crash moving us towards focusing on attracting investment and seeing China as a huge source of that investment

.@joshuawongcf joins us now, and says it is not an exaggeration that this may be his last time addressing the world as a free man

He says that every word that comes from his mouth today could be used as evidence of crime in a Chinese courtroom

The law will punch a hole in Hong Kong judiciary system, especially when China can extradite any suspected criminal for trial in China

Beyond any doubt, China is scrapping any promise under the Joint Declaration, a legally binding international treaty

It is time for the world to step up and send a warning signal to Beijing in order to prevent China from trampling on our liberal value and rule-based system

Joshua fears he may be sent to prison in China next week unless the world acts

Joshua believes that the UK providing a lifeboat (BN(O)) to Hong Kongers is great and they are all really impressed, but believes that actions speak louder than words and the world must take concrete steps to oppose the law before June 30th

Countries around the world have national security laws, but the threat that Hong Kongers face is being prosecuted as 'colluders' for criticising the Chinese government

Joshua has been an activist since he was 15 and he feels that his actions and the actions of his peers can make Hong Kong a truly better place

He will continue to interact with leaders around the world to build a global coalition in defense of human rights

Thank you all so much for joining us!

Special thank you to our incredible guests, @joshuawongcf, @benedictrogers, @TomTugendhat, and @lisanandy

We look forward to continuing this conversation and bringing attention to these issues in the days and weeks to come