|
Co-Signed Statement from Falun Dafa Associations in Europe regarding Article 23 in Hong Kong
(Clearwisdom.net) December 19, 2002
5 Arcadia Court 208 Sheen
Road Richmond Surrey TW10 5AN Security Bureau (Attn: AS(F)2, F Division) 6th Floor, East Wing Central Government Offices Lower Albert Road, Central Hong Kong Dear Sir or Madam, We are writing to express our opposition to the proposed legislation to
implement the Article 23 of the Basic Law It is widely known that the proposals, popularly known as the
"anti-subversion" law, was written under direct pressure from China and would
make it possible "to proscribe an organisation ... affiliated with a Mainland
organization which has been proscribed in the Mainland by the Central
Authorities" (HK government consultation document). Hong Kong currently has a legal system modeled on that of the UK. However,
if the proposal became law, Hong Kong would have to ban any organisation
determined by China as a national security risk, thereby making a mockery of
HK's autonomy and the "one country, two systems" principle. All dissident
groups could be affected including Falun Gong, democracy activists and
Catholics. The anti-subversion law would also put serious restrictions on HK's
media with regard to publishing information relating to Beijing. In essence,
the law would mean importation to HK of China's totalitarian control and human
rights abuse, and HK courts effectively can only watch. Although Hong Kong is required under its Basic Law to enact "Article-23"
legislation, the current proposal is far more draconian than stipulated in the
Basic Law. The consultation paper has provoked widespread and strong
opposition from key figures in the legal, political, human rights, religious,
media and other communities in HK. We urge the HK government to preserve Hong Kong's autonomy in determining
the legal status of Falun Gong and other groups in Hong Kong, to ensure that
the rights and freedoms of the Hong Kong people are upheld, and to comply with
widespread calls for a white bill for public consultation. Yours sincerely UK Falun Gong Association German Falun Dafa Association Nordic Falun Dafa Association Italian Falun Dafa Association Spanish Falun Dafa Association French Falun Dafa Association Belgian Falun Dafa Association Netherlands Falun Dafa Association Swiss Falun Dafa Association Russian Dafa Association Ireland Dafa Association Czech Dafa Association Austrian Falun Dafa Association Finland Dafa Association Denmark Dafa Association Norway Dafa Association European Falun Dafa Association
(Baltic branch) European Falun Dafa Association
(Greek branch) European Falun Dafa Association
(Portugal branch) European Falun Dafa Association
(Hungarian branch) European Falun Dafa Association
(Polish branch) European Falun Dafa Association
(Turkish branch) European Falun Dafa Association
(Icelandic branch) European Falun Dafa Association
(Romanian branch) European Falun Dafa Association (Jugoslavian
branch) European Falun Dafa Association
(Bulgarian branch) Posting date: 12/22/2002 |