Four Calls to Action by Taiwanese Civil Society Organizations in Pragmatic Response to the Fugitive Offenders Bill ("Anti-Extradition Law Amendment Bill")

Photo / Hong Kong Anti-Extradition March

The Legislative Council of Hong Kong is scheduled to review the Fugitive Offenders and Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Legislation (Amendment) Bill 2019—commonly known by the Hong Kong public as the "Fugitive Offenders Bill" or "Anti-Extradition Law Amendment Bill"—on June 12. This bill would empower the Hong Kong government to surrender suspects or defendants, including Taiwanese citizens, Hong Kong residents, and nationals of other countries, to China for trial upon the request of the Chinese government, regardless of whether the individual is a resident of Hong Kong, entering Hong Kong, or merely transiting through. Given China's inadequate protection of judicial human rights and the Chinese Communist Party Central Committee's designation of judicial independence as one of the "seven taboos" not to be spoken of, this legislative amendment has sparked widespread anxiety and backlash among the people of Hong Kong while severely threatening the personal freedom of Taiwanese citizens entering or transiting through Hong Kong. Although over a million people took to the streets in protest in Hong Kong on June 9, the Chief Executive of Hong Kong has insisted that the review of the Fugitive Offenders Bill will resume on June 12. We hereby issue this statement to support the people of Hong Kong in their demand and action urging the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government to withdraw the Fugitive Offenders Bill, and put forward the following calls to action:

1. The Legislative Yuan should invite the Executive Yuan to present a special report and issue a statement during its extraordinary session:

   In view of the fact that the amendments to the Fugitive Offenders Bill severely threaten the personal freedom of our nationals entering or transiting through Hong Kong, the extraordinary session of the Legislative Yuan to be convened on June 17 should invite the Premier, the Minister of the Mainland Affairs Council, and the heads of relevant ministries and agencies to submit a response report, and adopt a statement demanding that the Hong Kong government halt the amendments to the Fugitive Offenders Bill that threaten the personal freedom of our citizens.

2. The government should formulate and issue an emergency order to suspend the partial application of the Hong Kong and Macau Regulations:

   Due to Hong Kong's historical uniqueness, countries around the world, including Taiwan and the United States, have granted Hong Kong an "independent customs territory status," "special legal status," or "special international status" distinct from the provinces of China. However, this foundation rests upon Hong Kong's relative autonomy and rule of law tradition, which set it apart from mainland Chinese provinces. If the Legislative Council of Hong Kong completes the third reading of the Fugitive Offenders Bill, it signifies that the relative autonomy remaining to Hong Kong under "One Country, Two Systems" has completely collapsed, and Hong Kong's political situation has changed significantly compared to 1997. It is recommended that the Executive Yuan, pursuant to Article 60 of the Act Governing Relations with Hong Kong and Macau—which stipulates that "[i]f after the implementation of this Act, changes occur in Hong Kong or Macau such that the implementation of this Act is likely to endanger the security of the Taiwan Area, the Executive Yuan may report to the President for the issuance of an emergency order pursuant to Paragraph 4, Article 2 of the Additional Articles of the Constitution to suspend the application of all or part of this Act" and "[f]or those parts of this Act whose application is suspended, if no separate legal norms are otherwise enacted, the relations with Hong Kong or Macau shall be governed by the relevant provisions of the Act Governing Relations between Peoples of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area"—report to the President to issue an emergency order.

3. Prioritize the regulation of Hong Kong civil servants and Hong Kong-registered capital heavily influenced by Chinese capital coming to Taiwan:

   To maintain friendly relations with the people of Hong Kong, it is recommended that the Executive Yuan adopt the following measures as an initial step, to be dynamically adjusted in the future according to changes in Hong Kong's political situation:

   1. Civil servants and police officers from Hong Kong entering Taiwan shall submit applications in accordance with the Act Governing Relations between Peoples of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area, and shall no longer be subject to Article 11 of the Act Governing Relations with Hong Kong and Macau.
   2. Hong Kong residents, legal entities, organizations, or other institutions investing in Taiwan that fail to provide a "Declaration of No Substantial Influence by Chinese Capital" shall submit applications in accordance with the Act Governing Relations between Peoples of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area, and shall no longer be subject to Article 31 of the Act Governing Relations with Hong Kong and Macau. Anyone subsequently found to have submitted a false "Declaration of No Substantial Influence by Chinese Capital" shall bear criminal liability for making false entries by a public servant under the Criminal Code (the definition of "substantial influence" shall refer to International Accounting Standards No. 28, Investments in Associates).

4. Call on all countries to jointly review the state of democracy and human rights in Hong Kong, and decide whether to curtail, revoke, or continue Hong Kong's "independent customs territory status," "special legal status," or "special international status" distinct from mainland Chinese provinces, so as to prevent China from continuously damaging the current state of democracy, human rights, and the rule of law in Hong Kong.

Joint Statement

Taiwan Civil Front
Economic Democracy Union
Taiwan Association for Human Rights
Taiwan Indigenous Peoples Action Coalition
Committee for Aboriginal Affairs, Presbyterian Church in Taiwan
Wenshan Community College, Taipei City
Taiwan Labor Front
Taiwan Health Human Rights Action Association
Congress Watch
Tibet Taiwan Human Rights Network
Taiwan Alliance to End the Death Penalty
China Change Institute
Bee Citizen
New Frontier Foundation
Judicial Reform Foundation
Central Taiwan Citizens' Action Front
Awakening Foundation
Taiwan March
Penal Reform Watch
(To be continued)