Description
Added on the 05/09/2016 01:01:16 - Copyright : Reuters EN
Hong Kong's legislature votes for a Beijing-backed law banning insults to China's national anthem, a move critics say further stifles dissent in the restless semi-autonomous financial hub. IMAGES
Hong Kong Chief executive Carrie Lam votes in district elections, a ballot the city's pro-democracy movement hope will send a message to her Beijing-backed government. IMAGES
The United States denounces Hong Kong's ban on a protest song sung by pro-democracy demonstrators, saying it further tarnishes the financial hub's reputation. "The decision to ban this song is the latest blow to the international reputation of a city that previously prided itself on having an independent judiciary protecting the free exchange of information, ideas and goods," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller tells reporters. SOUNDBITE
The US says it is "alarmed" after Hong Kong legislators fast-tracked a new national security law that introduces penalties such as life imprisonment for crimes related to treason and insurrection, and up to 20 years in jail for the theft of state secrets. "We believe that these kinds of actions have the potential to accelerate the closing of Hong Kong’s once open society," US Department of State deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel tells reporters during a press briefing. SOUNDBITE
Images of police and journalists outside the West Kowloon Law Courts Building, where Hong Kong pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai is due to stand trial in the Chinese city on national security charges that could see him jailed for life. IMAGES
|
Support : Technical 
- Content 
- Editors 
