RE: What’s the extradition bit all about? thanks
BACKGROUND:
In early 2018, 19-year-old Hong Kong resident Chan Tong-kai allegedly killed his pregnant girlfriend Poon Hiu-wing in Taiwan, proceeding to return to Hong Kong. Chan admitted to Hong Kong police that he killed Poon but the police were unable to charge him for murder or extradite him to Taiwan because no agreement is in place.
Until May 2019, the two ordinances in Hong Kong, the Fugitive Offenders Ordinance and Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Ordinance, were not applicable to the requests for surrender of fugitive offenders and mutual legal assistance between Hong Kong and Taiwan.
In February 2019, the government proposed changes to fugitive laws, establishing a mechanism for case-by-case transfers of fugitives by the Hong Kong Chief Executive to any jurisdiction with which the city lacks a formal extradition treaty, which it claimed would close the “legal loophole”
The Bill was first proposed by the Hong Kong government in February 2019 in response to the 2018 homicide case of a Hong Kong couple in Taiwan. The government said that the amendment to the Fugitive Offenders Ordinance (Cap. 503) and Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Legislation Ordinance (Cap. 525) would establish a mechanism for case-by-case transfers of fugitives by the Chief Executive to not only Taiwan, BUT ALSO MAINLAND CHINA , with which the city lacks a formal extradition treaty.
AS a result of INCLUDING MAINLAND CHINA in the extradition bill, which people originally wanted to ONLY involve Taiwan, things went haywire.
Concerns were raised from all sectors of the community, including legal professionals, journalists, human rights groups and business chambers. Opposition expressed fears about the legislation that the city would open itself up to the long arm of mainland Chinese Communist law and that people from Hong Kong fall victim to a different legal system.
It therefore urged the government to establish an extradition arrangement with Taiwan only, and to sunset the arrangement immediately after the surrender of suspect.
When the HK Legislature refused to consider this, the protests started.
Yes, I think it was the legal community that was involved in the very first protest because it saw the implications of the bill. I only know that because I got a Facebook invite to participate in that protest (unfortunately I am actually thousands of miles away or I would have gone). Anyway, people were shocked to see all these respected barristers, solicitors and retired judges participating, which opened everyone’s eyes to the danger of the bill.