WASHINGTON – Activists involved in the pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong appealed to U.S. lawmakers Tuesday to support their fight by banning the export of American police equipment that is used against demonstrators and by more closely monitoring Chinese efforts to undermine civil liberties in the city.
The activists, including several young people who have emerged as prominent figures in a leaderless movement, testified before a U.S. government commission set up by Congress to monitor human rights in China.
Republicans and Democrats on the Congressional-Executive Commission on China expressed their support Tuesday for protests that began in June with a since-withdrawn bill to extradite people arrested in the semiautonomous Chinese territory to China for prosecution.
“The heart of the discontent is that Hong Kong’s political leaders do not represent and are not accountable to the people. Instead, Hong Kong’s leaders are beholden to the Chinese government,” said Rep. James McGovern, D-Mass.
The former British colony has been allowed certain autonomy and freedoms since it was returned to China in 1997 as a territory, with a “one country, two systems” policy that was supposed to ensure a smooth political transition.