Hong Kong Suspends Controversial Extradition Bill After The Biggest Protests In Years
Victory, for now. But the government can't be trusted.
Via Fox News:
The Hong Kong government on Saturday suspended the controversial plan to allow extraditions to mainland China.
Chief Executive Carrie Lam, who was chosen by Beijing to be the highest-level local official, made the announcement in a bid to restore calm after the bill sparked the city's biggest protests in years.
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"After repeated internal deliberations over the last two days, I now announce that the government has decided to suspend the legislative amendment exercise," Lam said.
Hong Kong's chief executive, Carrie Lam, held a press conference in Hong Kong on Saturday, June 15, 2019. Lam said she will suspend a proposed extradition bill indefinitely in response to widespread public protests.
Critics argued that the proposed bill would erode legal protections and freedoms that Hong Kong enjoys as a former British colony and it could be then used by the Chinese government to crackdown on dissidents who fled mainland China.
The Communist Party-ruled mainland took control of Hong Kong in 1997 with a promise not to interfere with the city's civil liberties and courts.
Lam said during a news briefing that it was time "for responsible government to restore as quickly as possible this calmness in society" but admitted that the bill won't fully withdraw, a comment that will give little assurance to the protesters.
Nickarama | June 15, 2019 11:00 am