The mass arrests of largely moderate pro-democracy campaigners and opposition leaders accelerate an ongoing political crackdown in the Asian financial hub.
The activists, who were captured by coast guard authorities from neighboring Guangdong province in August, have been sentenced up to three years in prison.
Hong Kong's agreement with AstraZeneca, Pfizer-BioNTech SE and Chinese developer Sinovac has given the city a total of 22.5 million doses of potential vaccines so far.
China has already boosted control of the executive branch and disqualified some pro-democracy lawmakers in Hong Kong. Now Beijing is seeking to tighten its grip over the judiciary.
The formal charges under the national security law, which Beijing forced in Hong Kong after bypassing the local legislature, could prompt further criticism from the US and the UK.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said Beijing would take countermeasures should the US continue down the 'wrong path,' without elaborating.
About 2.16 lakh Hong Kong residents received British National (Overseas) passports this year, higher than any annual figure since 1997. China sees this as inappropriate interference.
Hong Kong has so far been relatively unscathed, but as the pandemic approaches its first anniversary, residents are looking to the response systems in place in other nations in envy.
Nearly 140 investment proposals valued at over $1.75 billion, mostly from China and Hong Kong—China’s special administrative region—have been put on hold pending scrutiny.
The dynamics between Europe and Russia have gone so south that mending fences looks like an uphill task—even as the US swings between sanctions and olive branches.
Centre for Science and Environment in new report makes case for rationalising GST on waste material, saying most informal operators can’t afford high tax & it also hinders recycling.
Standing up to America is usually not a personal risk for a leader in India. Any suggestions of foreign pressure unites India behind who they see as leading them in that fight.
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