Washington gets tough on Beijing over HK

WASHINGTON: The US House of Representatives on Tuesday passed four pieces of legislation taking a hard line on China, three related to pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong and one commending Canada’s government in a dispute over the extradition of an executive from Huawei Technologies.

All four measures passed by unanimous voice vote, as members of Congress — Democrats and Republicans — said they wanted to take an aggressive stance on China and show support for Hong Kong following four months of unrest in the city.

One of the measures, the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, would require the US secretary of state to certify every year that Hong Kong was retaining its autonomy in order to keep receiving the special treatment that has allowed it to be a major financial centre.

A second, the Protect Hong Kong Act, would bar commercial exports of military and crowd control items that Hong Kong policy could use against demonstrators.

The Senate has not yet scheduled votes on the legislation, which would send the measures to the White House for Mr Trump to sign into law — or veto. However, a Foreign Relations Committee aide said votes on Hong Kong-related measures were expected in the chamber in the coming weeks.

The third measure passed by the House is a non-binding resolution recognising Hong Kong’s relationship to the United States, condemning Beijing’s “interference” in its affairs, and supporting the right of the city’s residents to protest.

The fourth was another non-binding House resolution commending Canada for its actions related to a US request to extradite Huawei’s chief financial officer, Meng Wanzhou, who was arrested in Canada in December.