Harsh prison sentences could damage reputation of financial hub and business hub – The Irish Times

An unusually late tropical cyclone Hong Kong At the beginning of this week, the city was hit by heavy rain for several days. Hundreds of people endured hours of pouring rain to line up outside the West Kowloon Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday morning, with some camping out overnight to get a seat at the front.

They came for them Prison sentences for 45 former politicians and activists He was convicted under the National Security Law (NSL), which Beijing implemented four years ago. Few of those who managed to enter the building found a seat in the courtroom, and most watched the proceedings on video screens in packed rooms.

The hearing lasted only a few minutes, and the presiding judge said he would not read the entire sentencing statement, which was more than 80 pages. So he listed the sentences given to each defendant and identified each by number rather than name.

Each was sentenced to a lengthy prison sentence, and former law professor Benny Tai was given the maximum sentence of 10 years in prison for devising a plan to hold primary elections ahead of legislative elections. The aim was to maximize the chances of pro-democracy candidates winning a majority so they could block the legislation if the executive did not agree to their demands.

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This is normal policy in many jurisdictions, but for the three-judge panel that heard the case, it was tantamount to an attempt to overthrow the government. The mother of Hendrick Lui, who was sentenced to four years and three months in prison, was taken into a police van outside the court after carrying a banner that read: “Just people will live, evil must die.”

Many of the same people who showed up on Tuesday noted that former media owner Jimmy Lai was lining up outside the same courthouse on Wednesday morning. Took the stand in national security case. Representatives from several diplomatic missions in the city, including Ireland’s, also attended the courtroom.

Lai is the most high-profile figure to face charges under the national security law and his case has been supported by senior American politicians including Donald Trump. Keir Starmer raised the issue when he met Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Rio de Jainero this week.

But the harsh penalties imposed on Tuesday could have more serious and immediate consequences for Hong Kong and its reputation as a financial hub and commercial hub. US state department spokesman Matthew Miller said Washington would take action in response to the arrests within hours.

“The 45 defendants sentenced today were aggressively prosecuted, and many now face life-changing prison sentences for their peaceful participation in political activities protected under the Hong Kong Basic Law,” he said.

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“In response, the Department of State is taking steps to impose new visa restrictions on multiple Hong Kong officials responsible for NSL enforcement.”

The Trump administration imposed sanctions on 11 senior Hong Kong officials in 2020, banning them from owning property or other assets in the United States and making it a crime for anyone in the United States to have any financial transactions with them. Carrie Lam, the city’s former chief executive, said she could not access banking services due to sanctions and had to keep piles of cash at home.

More dangerous for Hong Kong is the suppression of political dissent and the questions that the implementation of the NSL raises about the city’s autonomy. Although Hong Kong has been part of the People’s Republic of China since its handover from Britain in 1997, it has its own currency, central bank, passport and judicial system.

Most importantly, it has its own representation in bodies such as the World Trade Organization (WTO) and is fully integrated into the international financial system. This year, Hong Kong surpassed Singapore and returned to the world’s third financial center position after New York and London.

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Hong Kong’s special status could create a boom in shipping and logistics next year if Trump imposes a 60 percent tariff on Chinese imports. The local expectation is that the tariffs will not apply to Hong Kong and so more Chinese goods are likely to be shipped through the city’s port to avoid them.

All of these benefits depend on the rest of the world agreeing that Hong Kong remains sufficiently autonomous from China and has a sufficiently independent judicial system to justify them. In September, the US House of Representatives passed a bill calling for a review of Hong Kong’s economic and trade offices in Washington, New York and San Francisco.

If the bill is approved by the Senate, a review will decide whether the offices should be stripped of diplomatic privileges for not operating with a “high degree of autonomy.” The risk for Hong Kong is that more news from the courts like this week’s could call that autonomy further into question.