The Hong Kong legislative council is already not fully democratic. The public elects only half of its 70 members; the other half is selected by so-called functional constituencies, which give pro-Beijing corporations and tycoons direct influence over policy. The result is a business-friendly legislature that disqualified elected officials who refuse to pledge allegiance to mainland China and essentially criminalized a pro-independence political party.
...And for the more militant demonstrators who vandalized the LegCo building, there is a fifth demand: for the Chinese government to implement democratic reforms and allow citizens to vote for their own leader and legislature. This isn’t the first time Hong Kong has made headlines for massive, sustained protest. In 2014, thousands of young adults occupied the business district for 79 days, calling upon the local government to implement universal suffrage and democratic representation; hundreds of thousands more came out to protest after the police used tear gas on these teenagers.
...This should be an opportunity for the left to build the “progressive international” of which Sanders has spoken. Progressives are understandably wary of interfering in another country’s affairs or of creating the conditions for a new Cold War. But there is a difference between abetting and launching coups, and reaching out to democracy activists, building cooperation between progressive movements, and expressing unequivocal support for self-determination.
The 2019 Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act as well as Cruz’s proposed legislation frames Hong Kong’s problems as an infringement upon American interests. These proposed laws stop short of championing the self-determination of Hong Kongers. What the American left, including Democrats, can do is to bolster the voices of millions of Hong Kongers that have come out in recent weeks to push for greater democracy.
Connect With Us