BREAKING: The UK, US, Canada and Australia have issued a joint statement saying they are 'deeply concerned' by China's approval of a new national security bill in Hong Kong. More on this story here:
Beijing says the legislation is aimed at tackling secession, subversion, terrorism and foreign interference.
Thousands of people have already taken to the streets in anger over the bill, with demonstrators staying out late into the evening on Wednesday.They were heard chanting for full democracy and for Hong Kong to seek independence from China, saying this is now"the only way out".
China's new bill is expected to see Chinese intelligence agencies set up bases in the city, which was supposed to have a high degree of autonomy under the terms of its 1997 handover by former colonial power Britain. The US mission to the UN said the issue was"a matter of urgent global concern that implicates international peace and security", while China said the legislation was an internal matter.
On Friday, the National People's Congress proposed national security legislation to cover Hong Kong. It was a huge surprise - and a massive accelerant. Hong Kong's autonomy was supposed to last until 2047. Instead, they contained it, at the same time as the West grimly tallied tens of thousands of deaths. Washington railed against Beijing - the same trajectory as pre-pandemic, but now with much more vigour and much higher stakes.
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