HK suspends operations at representative office in Taiwan as tensions
rise
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[May 18, 2021]
By Sharon Tam and Yimou Lee
HONG KONG/TAIPEI (Reuters) -Hong Kong
government's suspended on Tuesday operations at its representative
office in Taiwan in a sign of escalating diplomatic tension between the
global financial hub and the democratically ruled island that Beijing
claims.
Tension between Hong Kong's Beijing-backed government and Taiwan have
risen since pro-democracy protests erupted in Hong Kong in 2019 and
China responded by imposing a sweeping national security law in the city
that prompted many activists to leave, some for Taiwan.
A Hong Kong government representative did not provide an explanation for
the decision to halt operations at the Hong Kong Economic, Trade and
Cultural Office, adding only that the decision was not related to the
recent rise in coronavirus cases in Taiwan.
"The suspension is not related to the pandemic situation in Taiwan. We
do not have anything further to add," the representative said in a
statement.
Taiwan's government said that while it respected the decision, it also
regretted it.
"We express deep regret at today's unilateral decision by the Hong Kong
government," Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council said in a statement.
Taiwan has criticised the security law that Beijing imposed in Hong Kong
and opened an office in Taipei to help people who may want to leave.
In August last year, China intercepted a boat carrying 12 people from
Hong Kong, who had all faced charges related to the anti-government
protests, and were apparently looking to escape to Taiwan.
Last year, Taiwan officials in Hong Kong were told their visas would not
be renewed unless they signed a document supporting Beijing's claim to
Taiwan under its "one China" policy, a person with direct knowledge of
the matter told Reuters.
Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council said this month there were only eight
Taiwanese staff members left at its de facto consulate in Hong Kong, and
that all their visas were due to expire this year.
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A Hong Kong flag is flown behind a pair of surveillance cameras
outside the Central Government Offices in Hong Kong, China July 20,
2020. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu
Hong Kong's Constitutional and Mainland Affairs
Bureau said the suspension in operations meant requests for
assistance from Hong Kong people in Taiwan would be handled through
hotlines and via a Hong Kong government website.
Beijing sees Taiwan as part of "one China" and has never renounced
the use of force to bring the island under its control.
China has proposed that Taiwan be brought under Chinese rule under a
similar "one country two systems" arrangement it offered to Hong
Kong when it returned to Chinese rule in 1997.
All of Taiwan's main political parties have rejected the idea.
Hong Kong has long served as an important trade and investment
conduit between Taiwan and China, which have no diplomatic
relations.
The security law in Hong Kong punishes what China broadly defines as
subversion, secession, terrorism and collusion with foreign forces
with up to life in prison.
Critics of the law fear it will crush the wide-ranging freedoms
promised when it returned to Chinese rule. Supporters say it has
restored the stability that is essential for its economic success.
(Reporting by Sharon Tam in Hong Kong and Yimou Lee in Taipei;
Writing by Marius Zaharia; Editing by Michael Perry, Robert Birsel)
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