Amnesty International said Wednesday that the recently passed national security law in Hong Kong is a violation of human rights. The group said authorities in the city have used the law to justify "censorship, harassment, arrests and prosecutions."
The international human rights group published a 47-page report of its findings, citing mostly court judgments, hearing notes and interviews of those prosecuted under the new security law. In its report, the group concluded that authorities have used the law to "carry out a wide range of human rights violations."
The Beijing-drafted national security law was imposed in Hong Kong in June last year. Under the new law, authorities were given wider powers to enforce punishment on any activity that can be characterized as subversion, secession and terrorism. Those found guilty of violating the new law can face up to life in prison.
Hong Kong authorities previously said the passing of the law would only affect an "extremely small minority" of the people living in the former British colony. Officials said the law is meant to restore stability and address the often violent protests that have been plaguing the city for months in 2019.
Amnesty International doesn't agree with the reasoning behind the passing of the law. Since it was passed, several high-profile democratic politicians and activists have been arrested.
"In one year, the National Security Law has put Hong Kong on a rapid path to becoming a police state and created a human rights emergency for the people living there. Ultimately, this sweeping and repressive legislation threatens to make the city a human rights wasteland increasingly resembling mainland China," the group's Asia-Pacific Regional Director, Yamini Mishra, said.
Authorities have reasoned that all of the arrests made under the new law were lawful and that no one was above the law regardless if they are politicians or simply residents.
After it was returned to China rule in 1997, Hong Kong still retained a high degree of autonomy. The city-state provided citizens with wide-ranging rights and freedoms not available for those living in mainland China.
