2019 Hong Kong anti-extradition bill protests
The 2019 Hong Kong anti-extradition bill protests were a significant series of demonstrations sparked by the proposed Fugitive Offenders Bill, which would enable the extradition of fugitives to jurisdictions without formal agreements, including mainland China. Many Hong Kong residents and activists feared that this legislation threatened the region's autonomy and civil liberties, given the historical tensions following the 1997 handover from the UK to China. Protests began in earnest in June 2019, with hundreds of thousands participating, escalating to millions as the movement evolved to include broader demands for democratic reforms and inquiries into police conduct.
The situation intensified with confrontations between protesters and law enforcement, leading to violent clashes and vandalism. Participants employed various tactics, from peaceful marches to more aggressive actions, reflecting a deepening frustration with perceived encroachments on their rights. Despite government attempts to suspend the bill, protesters continued to demand its complete withdrawal, alongside calls for universal suffrage. The protests not only highlighted the local opposition to the bill but also encapsulated broader concerns over the future of Hong Kong's political landscape and the "one country, two systems" principle.
2019 Hong Kong anti-extradition bill protests
The 2019 Hong Kong anti-extradition bill protests, also known as the Anti-Extradition Law Amendment Bill (ELAB) Movement, was a series of protests that began in Hong Kong following the introduction of the Fugitive Offenders Bill by the city’s government in early 2019. The bill was designed to allow local authorities to seize and extradite criminal fugitives wanted in territories outside Hong Kong who did not have extradition agreements with the Hong Kong government. Hong Kong is a semi-autonomous region of the People’s Republic of China, and citizens worried that such a bill would threaten the region’s independence and civil freedoms because Hong Kong’s residents and visitors could be extradited to mainland China, where they would then be subjected to mainland authority. The protests persisted for several months following the announcement and grew to include hundreds of thousands of citizens marching in opposition to the bill and later in the name of pro-democracy and anti-police brutality. Protests escalated to violent levels during this period as demonstrators vandalized government buildings. Conflict between protestors, police, and gangs also intensified as the months wore on. Demonstrators laid out a set of demands that needed to be met before the protests ceased, including a promise to scrap the Fugitive Offenders Bill, an inquiry into police brutality against protestors, and action toward democratic reforms such as universal suffrage for elections.
Background
The protests erupted following the introduction of a proposed amendment to Hong Kong’s Fugitive Offenders Ordinance and Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Ordinance. The amendment was a response to the murder of a Taiwanese woman by her Taiwanese boyfriend while they visited Hong Kong in 2018. The government of China, and by extension Hong Kong, does not recognize Taiwan as a sovereign state and therefore has no extradition agreement with Taiwan. The bill was proposed to remedy this issue, but its wording concerned many people. The bill allowed for the transfer of fugitives to any jurisdiction with which Hong Kong lacked a formal extradition agreement, including mainland China. Many pro-democracy advocates within Hong Kong feared this would give China undue authority over residents and visitors of Hong Kong, which operated as a special administrative region of China. This means that its government operates independently from China’s, and China’s national law does not apply to the region.
Hong Kong residents felt their concerns were justified. Tensions still existed following the Umbrella Revolution of 2014—a series of protests that voiced opposition to Hong Kong’s failure to pass a resolution that would allow for a more democratic electoral process and universal suffrage. A majority of Hong Kong’s political leaders are appointed by an election committee as opposed to a general election, and many members of this committee are accountable to Beijing and favor pro-Beijing figures. Pro-democracy advocates accused mainland China of attempting to exert greater influence over Hong Kong politics and society in the years that followed, and some suspected Chinese authorities of targeting political enemies.
Opponents of the amendment worried that it would give China the authority to legally extradite political opponents by accusing them of non-political crimes, thus depriving them of Hong Kong’s legal protections. They also feared the law would be the end of the “one country, two systems” policy in place since 1997, when Hong Kong’s sovereignty was handed over to the government of China by the United Kingdom. The policy afforded Hong Kong a number of civil rights that the citizens of mainland China lacked. Random detentions, torture, and denial of legal representation requests were known to be common within China’s justice system.
Overview
Anti-extradition bill protests earnestly kicked off in June 2019 after news outlets announced Hong Kong’s political leaders were sticking by the amendment. Hundreds of thousands of protestors took to the streets, many wearing white as a symbol of justice. Estimates counted close to one million protestors participating in the marches, although Hong Kong officials reported the total numbers as being much lower. On June 11, the night before the bill was scheduled to have its second reading, protestors gathered around the Legislative Council headquarters to try to prevent lawmakers from debating the bill. Protestors wore hardhats and facemasks and carried umbrellas in preparation for clashes with police. Police commanded crowds to disperse but more continued to arrive. Tear gas and rubber bullets were fired into the crowds, injuring many. The council meeting was eventually rescheduled.
Protests persisted over the next several days, inciting Chief Executive of Hong Kong Carrie Lam to suspend the bill. Protestors were not satisfied, however, and demanded the bill to be withdrawn completely. Thousands more protestors flooded the streets of Hong Kong and numbers soon reached into the millions. Motivations for the protests evolved during this period and began focusing on more than the bill. Demonstrators were also demanding an inquiry into police brutality against protestors. Others renewed the call for universal suffrage within Hong Kong. A turning point came on July 1, the anniversary of Hong Kong’s handover to China. The date is annually marked with mass pro-democracy demonstrations in the city. The demonstrations almost immediately sparked clashes between protestors and police. Protestors also began clashing with other protestors as they disagreed over demonstration strategies. A large portion of demonstrators marched peacefully through the streets as a show of defiance. Others used more violent tactics, vandalizing buildings and statues and shouting down peaceful protestors who attempted to stop the chaos.
News outlets also reported mob attacks on protestors on the streets and the subways. Police were slow to respond to these attacks, leading demonstrators to accuse them of colluding with the mob. By August, the protests had spread to areas outside of Hong Kong’s center. The Hong Kong government showed no signs of giving in, so protestors recruited aviation workers to go on strike, leading to numerous flight cancellations at Hong Kong’s airport—the eighth busiest airport in the world. Subway lines and highways were also blocked. Clashes between protesters and police continued into September with police often resorting to firing tear gas into the crowds. On October 1, the seventieth anniversary of Communist rule in China, police fired a live round into the chest of a protestor. Many more demonstrators were injured on this day and hundreds were arrested as protests continued with no end in sight.
Bibliography
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