OFFICIALS LEGISLATION INTEREST GROUPS PUBLIC STATEMENTS COMMITTEES VETOES

Hong Kong

Floor Speech

Date: Aug. 10, 2020
Location: Washington, DC

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Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, on a totally different matter, this weekend brought more unsettling news in the ongoing struggle for Hong Kong to preserve any shred of its civil liberties and self-governance.

One of the region's most prominent pro-democracy advocates, Jimmy Lai, was arrested yesterday for alleged violations of the so-called national security law imposed by Beijing.

Last year, after a historic election that saw millions flock to the polls to overwhelmingly reject President Xi's preferred candidates, the Chinese Communist Party moved quickly to choke Hongkongers' free expression.

Mr. Lai has been at the vanguard of the vibrant Hong Kong-based media and publishing world.

Jimmy Lai was arrested for an alleged violation of the so-called national security law imposed by Beijing. He has devoted much of his life to advancing precisely--precisely the sort of values that the CCP finds most repulsive: freedom of thought and freedom of speech.

The Senate, the country, and freedom-loving nations across the world stand with Mr. Lai and with all the peaceful demonstrators who have met the business end of the CCP's repression.

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