Thread by @joshuawongcf

[My thought after HK police issued arrest warrants to my friends]
patreon.com/posts/39964797/

1/When #HKers hope to secure a historic majority in the upcoming election, Gov postponed election & asked #Beijing to deal with whether and how incumbent lawmakers can extend their tenure.

2/ It is widely expected that #Beijing will tighten its curb on the city’s legislature by setting up new rubber-stamp legislature without real oppositions. The rubber-stamp legislature is not new to #Hongkong.

3/ Earlier in 1997, #Beijing has once set up a provisional legislature with #Beijing handpicked members and no mandate from voters. The body had passed several draconian bills including stricter restrictions on assemblies, demonstrations and associations.

4/ Therefore, #Beijing will probably ram through more political agenda through the new caretaker legislature and undermine the city’s last checks and balances mechanism to block further political intervention from China.

5/ Measures range from pushing through more #nationalsecurity legislation like #Article23 to amending LegCo rules to eliminate all chances of blocking future controversial bills or fundings through filibustering.

6/ Meanwhile, #hkpolice has issued arrest warrants for 6 activists under #nationalsecuritylaw, including one American citizen, Samuel Chu, who just exercises his rights to free speech OVERSEAS and urges his own govt to pass legislation, but now falls prey to this sweeping law.

7/ Clearly, the law poses an imminent threat to ex-pats, travellers and international institutions. Worse still, sources told pro-#Beijing media that the evidence they use is interviews with foreign media and social media posts.

8/ While #Beijing once claimed there would be no speech crime, the reality turns out to be the exact opposite.
After all, the situation becomes more critical, especially after the election was postponed.

9/ No one knows when the election will be reopened, whether the postponement will be extended, how the current legislature will be shaken up, and how many pro-democracy incumbents will be arrested under #nationalsecuritylaw.

10/ We hope the world can keep watch on the development in the upcoming weeks. To support our fight for the city’s future, please join my Patreon: patreon.com/joshuawong