Hong Kong needs rendition pact
- For quite different reasons, leading political parties have united against the proposed return of criminals to Taiwan, Macau and the mainland despite any final decision being made by the local judiciary
Our government has, once again, managed to unite major parties on both sides of the aisle against itself: the proposed rendition of criminals to the different Chinese jurisdictions of Taiwan, Macau and the mainland.
One side doesn’t want to see their rich pals sent away to face justice. The other doesn’t want anyone sent away at all, and prefers to maintain Hong Kong as a haven for fugitives. Perhaps they both amount to the same thing.
The pro-business Liberal Party and Business and Professionals Alliance for Hong Kong have demanded that white-collar crimes be exempt from the list of offences covered by the extradition proposal. Such minor offences as corruption, money-laundering and tax evasion should not be included among the 46 types of crime proposed for the rendition plan.
Tax laws on the mainland are so complicated you can easily get into trouble, says Liberal Party chairman Felix Chung Kwok-pan. Humm, how about pay your taxes first and then argue with the taxman afterwards?
A certain local tycoon has been sitting pretty and enjoying life in the city despite being sentenced to more than five years in jail in a case tied to one of Macau’s worst corruption and money-laundering offences.