By Jessie Pang
HONG KONG (Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives has passed a bill that could lead to the closure of Hong Kong's economic and trade offices in the country, drawing condemnation from the government in the Chinese-ruled city.
The bipartisan Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (HKETO) Certification Act would allow the U.S. president to remove the privileges and immunities of the trade offices in Washington D.C., New York, and San Francisco if they are not running with a "high degree of autonomy" from China and for other purposes.
Under the Act if it's found that the HKETOs no longer merits such privileges and immunities, they must terminate operations in the United States no later than 180 days after the certification is delivered to Congress.
The bill was passed overwhelmingly by 413 to 3 on Tuesday. The legislation must pass the U.S. Senate before it can be sent to President Joe Biden to be signed into law.
The Hong Kong government said in a statement on Wednesday that it "strongly condemned" the U.S. House for making use of the Act "to slander laws on safeguarding national security in Hong Kong and smear the human rights situation in Hong Kong".
"The US House of Representatives' fact-twisting attack on Hong Kong is politically driven, violates international law and the basic norms governing international relations, and grossly interferes in the affairs of Hong Kong," the statement said.
Hong Kong has 14 HKETOs overseas, including in Britain, Germany, Australia and Canada. In May, Britain arrested and charged three men, including a manager of HKETOs in the UK on suspicion of assisting Hong Kong's foreign intelligence service.
Republican Representative Chris Smith, chair of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, told a hearing on Tuesday that the legislation is "a necessary next step in tangibly demonstrating our solidarity with the persecuted citizens of Hong Kong", including jailed media tycoon Jimmy Lai, activist Joshua Wong and human rights lawyer Tonyee Chow.
Anna Kwok, Executive Director of the Hong Kong Democracy Council, who the government has issued a HK$1 million ($128,000) bounty on the suspicion of national security offences, said "the bill serves as a much-needed response to hold the Hong Kong government accountable for their blatant human-rights abuses".
Beijing imposed a national security law on Hong Kong in 2020 after months of sometimes violent pro-democracy protests that swept the city in 2019. Hong Kong passed an additional new national security law, also known as Article 23, in March.
The China and Hong Kong governments have said the security laws are necessary for restoring stability to the city.
According to the Security Bureau, more than 300 people have been arrested under the national security law.
($1 = 7.7959 Hong Kong dollars)