Hong Kong has implemented the controversial Article 23: Safeguarding National Security Ordinance, which has caused the UK, Australia, and Taiwan to issue travel warnings for the special administrative region.
The law targets crimes of treason, sedition, unlawful disclosure of state secrets, and external interference endangering national security. It was proposed in 2003 and shelved following mass protests. The law was then enacted on March 23 after receiving unanimous approval.
The UK has expressed concern over the ambiguity of the law, cautioning travellers that “the law can be interpreted broadly, and some offences can lead to a maximum penalty of life imprisonment”.
Taiwan’s government warned residents to check if they had made any statements criticising Chinese authorities and stated that the definition of illegal activity in the law was “very vague”.
“You could break the law without intending to,” read the Australian travel advisory. “The Australian Government can’t intervene in the Hong Kong judicial process.”
The Hong Kong government condemned the advisories, calling the remarks “skewed, fact-twisting, scaremongering and panic-spreading”.
