My Take | Amnesty International’s hidden politics, not Hong Kong’s, is the real problem
- As a human rights group, Amnesty has nothing to fear in the city. As a foreign political organisation, though, it doesn’t have much of a future here
Many Hong Kong holders of BN(O) passports who have decamped to Britain have insisted on calling themselves “refugees” rather than migrants. Considering the millions of real refugees who are fleeing death and destruction in places such as Yemen, Syria, Libya, Afghanistan and Sudan, their claim seems like a travesty.
They are not leaving because of actual threats to their safety and future, but because they object to the social and political developments on the ground. Fair enough, people are free to come and go. Just don’t try to exploit the situation and make a political statement about your decisions.
The problem with Amnesty International in Hong Kong is that over the years, it has moved away from its mandate of protecting human rights to promoting Western-style democracy. In other words, it has long been in the business of political agitation.
It has taken to commenting on, and criticising Hong Kong’s electoral and constitutional reforms, and in 2019, to slamming the anti-riot actions of local police while completely ignoring the violence, sometimes extreme, of the anti-government rioters and protesters. It has allied itself with local opposition groups and their friendly news media.
The group is politically aligned with the stated democratic and “regime change” goals of some Western governments, especially the United States. Its reports on Hong Kong over many years have provided routine ammunition and excuses for US politicians to criticise and interfere in the city’s affairs.