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1 1 (November 16, 2020)

handle is hein.crs/govdcox0001 and id is 1 raw text is: SConr essional Research Servik Hong Kong Government Disqualifies Four Legislative Council Members November 16, 2020 The government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) disqualified four elected members of the city's Legislative Council (Legco) on November 11, 2020, following a decision by China's National People's Congress Standing Committee (NPCSC) that sets new qualifications to be a Legco member. The following day, 15 pro-democracy Legco members submitted their resignations in support of the four disqualified members and in opposition to the actions of the NPCSC and the HKSAR government. As a result, Legco, which is supposed to have 70 members, now consists of 42 pro- establishment coalition members who generally support the HKSAR government, and 2 other unaffiliated members. Critics of the disqualifications see the actions of the NPCSC and the HKSAR government as denying the disqualified members their right to due process; undermining Hong Kong separation of powers between the executive, judicial, and legislative branches; violating China's obligation to provide the HKSAR a high degree of autonomy; and effectively ending China's one country, two systems policy. The governments of the PRC and HKSAR assert that the NPCSC decision and the HKSAR government's disqualifications were made in accordance with the PRC's constitution and law, including the Basic Law of the HKSAR (Basic Law). On November 12, 2020, U.S. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo characterized the disqualifications as a continuation of the PRC's onslaught against Hong Kong's freedoms and liberties. He declared that the NPCSC's decision tramples on the rights of the people of Hong Kong to choose their elected representatives as guaranteed by the Basic Law and further exposes Beijing's blatant disregard for its international commitments under the Sino-British Joint Declaration, a U.N.-registered treaty. Secretary Pompeo stated that the U.S. government will hold accountable the people responsible for these actions and policies that erode Hong Kong's autonomy and freedoms. Background The disqualification of the four Legco members-Dennis Kwok Wing-hang, Kwok Ka-ki, Kenneth Leung Kai-cheong, and Alvin Yeung Kgok-kiu-is the culmination of a series of events over the last two years Congressional Research Service https://crsreports.congress. gov IN11533 CRS NS GHT Prepared for Members ard Commit tees of Congress ------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------

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