Opinion | The US may be curtailing Hong Kong’s autonomy more than China

Hong Kong’s unique character has been damaged by Washington’s policy change and imposition of sanctions. This will only lead Hong Kong to turn more to the Greater Bay Area for its economic survival, and US influence on the city would diminish

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A man holds up a US flag outside the US Consulate General in Hong Kong on Independence Day on July 4. Photo: EPA-EFE

Published: 1:30am, 6 Sep 2020Updated: 4:57am, 6 Sep 2020

Thirty years on, if a chronicle of the Hong Kong special administrative region is to to be compiled, the year 2020 will no doubt go down in history as a watershed year in which Beijing’s enactment of a national security law for Hong Kong marked a turning point in the implementation of “one country, two systems”.

The Western media have commonly ascribed any perceived diminution of Hong Kong’s autonomy to actions taken by Beijing to enhance integration of Hong Kong with the rest of the nation, and legislation to strengthen national security has been the No 1 target of aspersion.

Scant attention has, however, been given to the damage to Hong Kong’s unique international character and status, qualities which underpin the highly treasured “two systems”, caused by the United States’ change of policy on Hong Kong and its imposition of a flurry of sanctions.

2020 is the pivotal year in which the US formally announced the termination of its special policy in support of Hong Kong, dating from the United States-Hong Kong Policy Act of 1992.

On May 27, after learning of Beijing’s plan to enact new national security legislation for Hong Kong, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo declared to Congress that he could no longer certify Hong Kong as autonomous from China. Irrespective of whether one agrees with that judgment or the US’ use of its power to issue such determinations, that announcement marked a turning point in US-Hong Kong relations which has far-reaching implications.

The US ratcheted up its rhetoric and measures against Hong Kong significantly after the enactment of the Hong Kong Autonomy Act and President Donald Trump’s signing of the executive order on “Hong Kong normalisation” on July 14. Under the executive order, the US determined that China’s enactment of a national security law for Hong Kong was the equivalent of a “national emergency”.

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