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Hong Kong’s pro-democracy legislators to resign en masse
11 November 2020, 09:24
China has in recent months moved to clamp down on opposition voices in Hong Kong.
Hong Kong’s pro-democracy legislators have said they will resign en masse after the city’s government moved to disqualify four of them.
The 19 members of the opposition camp had said on Monday that they would resign in a show of defiance if any pro-democracy legislators were disqualified. The group is expected to formally announce the resignations in a news conference.
The disqualification of the four legislators came after the National People’s Congress Standing Committee, which held meetings on Tuesday and Wednesday, passed a resolution saying those who support the city’s independence or refuse to acknowledge China’s sovereignty, as well as commit acts that threaten national security or ask external forces to interfere in city affairs, should be disqualified.
Beijing has in recent months moved to clamp down on opposition voices in Hong Kong with the imposition of a national security law, after months of anti-government protests last year rocked the city.