2020-06-30 18:12:50, 16 minutes ago, Al Jazeera
Content Categorization
/Law & Government/Government
/Law & Government/Public Safety
Word Count:
1576
Words/Sentence:
93
Reading Time:
15.76 min
Reading Quality:
Advanced
Readability:
16th or higher
Pro-democracy protesters observe a minute of silence during a protest after China's parliament passes a national security law for Hong Kong, in Hong Kong, China on June 30, 2020 [Tyrone Siu/Reuters]
Al Jazeera's Katrina Yu, reporting from Beijing, noted the passage of the law had been fast-tracked.
"It's very symbolic that this law has been passed just a day before the anniversary of Hong Kong's handover from Britain back to mainland China," she said.
Earlier on Tuesday, Dominic Raab, the British foreign secretary, called the passing of the law a "grave step", before adding on Twitter: "China has chosen to break their promises to the people of Hong Kong and go against their obligations to the international community.
With sweeping powers and ill-defined law the city will turn into a secret police state."
Demosisto then announced on Facebook it was disbanding, saying the loss of top members made it difficult to continue.
Some 4,000 police are expected to be on standby on Wednesday when an official ceremony also takes place.
Al Jazeera's Adrian Brown, reporting from Hong Kong, said the mood in the city was sombre.
The passage of the law has "had an immediate and chilling impact.
Keywords
Hong Kong, Asia Pacific, China, Hong Kong protests, Asia
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