Anti-China bill supporting Hong Kong protestors passes in US Senate
by Jordan Hilger, Worthy News Correspondent
(Worthy News) – The US Senate unanimously passed a bill Tuesday condemning China’s interference in Hong Kong affairs.
The bipartisan bill, called the “Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act,” will have Secretary of State Mike Pompeo assess once a year whether Hong Kong is remaining sufficiently autonomous from the communist mainland, giving him powers to retract its special trading status if overreach is detected.
In the Senate debate prior to the bill’s passage, Senator Marco Rubio called the wave of protests sweeping the Asian financial mecca a response to China’s “steady effort to erode the autonomy” of the region which has been governed by a “one country, two systems” axiom since the British left in 1997.
“We have sent a message to President Xi: Your suppression of freedom, whether in Hong Kong, in northwest China or in anywhere else, will not stand,” Senator Chuck Schumer added.
The bill now goes to the House of Representatives, which is likely to approve it, having passed a similar measure in support of Hong Kong protestors last month.