Protecting the Rights of Hong Kongers

Submitted by: 12 party members
Mover: Larry Ngan.
Summation: Luke Taylor MP.

Conference notes that:

1. Since the 2020 National Security Law was imposed, which violates the principle of the Joint Declaration, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has taken further steps to crack down on civil liberties in Hong Kong, including by broadening the scope and definition of political crimes through the passage of the Safeguarding National Security Bill in March 2024.
2. The arbitrary denial of entry to Hong Kong for Liberal Democrat MP Wera Hobhouse – the first time a British Parliamentarian has been blocked since the 1997 handover – further illustrates the increasing authoritarianism of the Hong Kong authorities.
3. The growth of an insidious campaign of transnational repression, sponsored by the CCP and implemented by the Chinese intelligence services, which is targeting pro–democracy Chinese and Hong Kong activists, including those based in the UK, who aim to shine a spotlight on the abuses of the Chinese state and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR).
4. The offering of bounties by the HKSAR of up to HK$1,000,000 (circa £94,000) for the arrest of Hong Kong and Chinese pro–democracy activists living abroad, including in the UK, and the anonymous delivery of letters to neighbours of pro–democracy activists urging them to bring activists to the Chinese Embassy in London.
5. The alarming proposals for a Chinese ‘mega–embassy’ in the heart of London which, if greenlighted, would pose serious risks to the UK’s national and cyber security, and which have been opposed by nearly 30 human rights and civil society organisations – including the Hong Kong Democracy Council and Safeguard Defenders.
6. The Government’s failure to place China (including HKSAR) on the enhanced tier of the Foreign Influence Registration Scheme (FIRS), despite the risks posed by the CCP to British interests and values.
7. As Beijing ramps up its efforts to intimidate these courageous activists, the Government’s Immigration White Paper has cast doubt on the future of the British National Overseas (BNO) pathway – including whether the proposed increase to the general residence requirement for settlement from five to ten years will apply to the BNO scheme.

Conference believes that:

1. The UK owes a unique and historic obligation to Hong Kongers, including those who have travelled to the UK already and those still living in Hong Kong who wish to leave the city.
2. Efforts to intimidate pro–democracy Chinese and Hong Kong activists living in the UK are abhorrent and constitute an attack on British sovereignty which must be rigorously and consistently opposed.
3. Hong Kongers wishing to travel and settle in the UK under the BNO scheme must be provided with clarity on the pathway’s requirements and timeline.

Conference reaffirms:

1. The policy recommendations proposed in conference motion Hong Kong’s Future (2020).
2. The Liberal Democrats’ commitment to ensuring Hong Kongers have a life raft should they need it – as pioneered by the late Paddy Ashdown – in light of China reneging on the promises enshrined in the Handover Declaration.

Conference calls on the UK Government to:

1. Block the application for the Chinese ‘mega–embassy’ and take measures to ensure that there is the right to peacefully and safely protest outside the proposed construction site.
2. Establish a bespoke police hotline for reporting incidents of political intimidation, and reaffirm the illegality of bounty hunting in the UK – sending a clear message that the UK will not tolerate CCP–sponsored attempts at extraterritorial repression.
3. Retain the five–year pathway to settlement for all BNO visa holders, reflecting our unique and historic obligation to the people of Hong Kong and providing the certainty that Hong Kongers deserve.
4. Include all Chinese Communist Party and HKSAR officials, as well as Chinese Communist Party–linked organisations, on the ‘enhanced tier’ of the FIRS.
5. Implement targeted sanctions against those officials in the HKSAR and the Chinese Communist Party identified as responsible for raising bounties on the heads of pro–democracy Hong Kong and Chinese activists living in the UK.
6. Appoint a Home Office Departmental Tsar for the ‘Protection of pro–democracy activists’ – with responsibility for laying an annual report before Parliament outlining the Government’s progress in strengthening protection for activists against foreign intimidation, and oversee the tackling of disinformation campaigns aimed at inciting violence against pro–democracy Hong Kong and Chinese activists.

Applicability: Federal.

Mover: 5 minutes; all other speakers: 3 minutes For eligibility and procedure for speaking in this debate, see pages 6-7 of the agenda. You can submit a speaker's card online here from Monday 15 September up to 13.10 Monday 22 September or in person.

The deadline for amendments to this motion is 13.00 Monday 8 September; you can submit amendments online here, see pages 9–10 of the agenda for more information. Those selected for debate will be printed in Conference Extra and Monday’s Conference Daily. The deadline for requests for separate votes is 09.00 Sunday 21 September; you can request separate votes here, see page 5 of the agenda for more information.

Image: Studio Incendo, CC BY 2.0