Peace Hong Kong Initiative:
Petition to the White House: Support Hong Kong Democracy and Prevent A Second Tiananmen Massacre in Hong Kong
We ask all the democracy-loving people living in the United States and other parts of the world to sign our We The People petition to the White House on Hong Kong which urges the US government to monitor the constitutional crisis in Hong Kong, press the Chinese Government to honor their promise of democratic elections to the Hong Kong citizenry, and prevent a second Tiananmen Massacre from happening in Hong Kong. Our goal of having the White House respond to this crisis can be achieved by reaching 100,000 signatories by Oct. 4, 2014. Please forward to friends and colleagues to support this petition.
Goal: Have the U.S. government to warn Beijing that any effort to crackdown peaceful demonstrations in Hong Kong by force will be strongly opposed and severely punished.
Requirement: 100,000 signatories by Oct 4, 2014
3 Easy Steps:
1. Go to: http://wh.gov/lhJ2E
2. Sign with First Name, Last Name, and Email on the right column.
3. [Important!] Check your email from the White House, and CONFIRM your signature.
Under the “One Country Two Systems” principle, China pledged in the Sino-British Joint Declaration of 1984, and the “Basic Law,” the constitution of Hong Kong, that the Hong Kong voters could freely choose their own leader. Beijing has repeatedly breached this promise of meaningful universal suffrage.
Widespread peaceful protests and demonstrations by the understandably outraged public ensued: but they are scheduled to increase in September and October. Chinese officials have intimidated or shu down voices of protest and threatened even more interference by Beijing and its People’s Liberation Army (PLA) troops stationed in Hong Kong. Given Beijing’s records of using force to suppress peaceful dissent, we fear repetition in Hong Kong of the infamous 1989 Massacre in Tiananmen Square. But this time, the United States has ample warning of the danger and could take steps to prevent it.
The most recent crisis began in June, when Beijing issued a bizarre interpretation of the “Basic Law,” undermining the rule of law in Hong Kong and eroding the guaranty of free elections. The formal promise of “Hong Kong people running Hong Kong with a high level of autonomy” was replaced by authoritarian concepts such as “complete jurisdiction”, “oversight by the Central Government” and “judges must be patriotic.”
On June 22, almost 800,000 people participated in a Civil Referendum, and 90% of them voted for a proposal of citizens selecting the nominees for Chief Executive. On July 1, over 500,000 people protested on the streets to underline this demand. Nevertheless, in July, the Hong Kong Government’s Report to Beijing on the selection of a Chief Executive in 2017 denied that the referendum reflected “mainstream opinion,” and said nothing on how the public could participate in the nominating process. The voice of the people had fallen on deaf ears. This is a huge step backward in Hong Kong’s constitutional development.
On August 31, the Chinese People’s Congress Standing Committee released its rules to select Hong Kong’s 2017 Chief Executive. A Nominating Committee will be composed of 1,200 Hong Kong persons, but mainly approved by Beijing. Candidates for Chief Executive must obtain approval from the majority of the Nominating Committee and the only two to three candidates will be chosen. Voters selecting leaders from 2-3 government approved candidates is not meaningful “universal suffrage”. The Hong Kong people’s hopes for democracy are once again shattered.
These edicts from Beijing have made large-scale peaceful protests in Hong Kong inevitable. Organizers of the activist movement “Occupy Central with Love and Peace” and other pro-democracy groups will organize non-violent actions through September, culminating in a possible large-scale sit-in that will likely block traffic in Hong Kong’s financial district.
The right to peaceful assembly and freedom of press are enshrined in the Hong Kong Bill of Rights, as well as in the Basic Law and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), an international treaty that applies to Hong Kong.
In early July, Hong Kong police briefly detained over 500 participants and organizers for their role in peaceful protests that called on the Hong Kong and Beijing governments to deliver genuine democracy.
In July, Hong Kong’s House News, one of Hong Kong’s most popular independent media outlets known for its support of Occupy Central, closed after its owner released a letter saying he was “fearful” and citing political pressure from China.
On August 28, 2014, the Hong Kong’s “anti-corruption agency” (ICAC) raided the media owner Jimmy Lai’s home in connection with his donations to pro-democracy legislators. The pro-democracy legislator Lee Cheuk-yan’s home was also raided on the same day.
Chinese officials in charge of Hong Kong affairs have responded to the Occupy Central movement by threatening a few times that China’s Hong Kong-based People’s Liberation Army (PLA) troops will use force, if necessary, to suppress peaceful demonstrations. We fear this is the likely tragic outcome.
We also believe that the United States and the international community have the responsibility to prevent such bloody tragedies from happening. While the Tiananmen Square Massacre surprised the world, this time Washington is on notice. We hereby strongly appeal to the U.S. government to make it clear to the Beijing authorities and Hong Kong government that any effort to crackdown peaceful demonstrations by force will be strongly opposed, and that the US government and the international community are determined to severely punish any use of force in settling political disputes.