Hong Kongers in Manchester urge Business and Trade Secretary to maintain pause of UK-China Joint Economic and Trade Commission
Today in partnership with Hong Kong Watch, four Manchester Hong Kong civil society organisations, Hong Kong Cultural Community CIC, Manchester Stands With Hong Kong, Salford Hongkongers CIC, and Trafford Hongkongers CIC sent a letter to Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds, requesting a meeting “to discuss why the UK-China Joint Economic and Trade Commission (JETCO) should continue to be paused for the sake of us who have sought safe haven in Manchester and UK businesses operating in Hong Kong who face increased risk.”
The letter follows the media reporting that the Business and Trade Secretary is considering resuming the JETCO with the People’s Republic of China. The Secretary is the Member of Parliament for Stalybridge and Hyde in the greater Manchester area, which is home to around 20,000 Hong Kongers living in the UK under the British National (Overseas) visa scheme.
The letter highlights how the JETCO economic dialogue was initially paused after Beijing imposed the National Security Law (NSL) on Hong Kong in 2020. The letter then emphasises how the atrocities that have happened under the NSL, including the issuance of HK$1 million (£100,000) bounties against 13 exiled Hong Kong activists in 2023 and the jailing of hundreds of peaceful political prisoners to this day, have only continued in Hong Kong. This includes the passage of the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance in March this year, which “has brought further devastating consequences to Hong Kong’s autonomy, rule of law, and fundamental freedoms.”
For this reason, the letter states: “Encouraging new economic ties between China and the UK risks sending the wrong message on China’s repeated violations of the Sino-British Joint Declaration and the Hong Kong government’s human rights abuses. It also risks sending the wrong message to UK companies, who may not realise the new legal and security risks present in Hong Kong.”
The Manchester Hong Konger groups urge the UK to be “extremely careful as it considers how to engage with China and Hong Kong, as the very presence of us Hong Kongers in Manchester is testament to the fact that the political environment is worsening in Hong Kong.”
Read the full letter here.
曼城港人團體聯同香港監察去信英國商貿大臣 促請繼續中斷英中經貿聯委會會議
四個曼徹斯特香港民間組織──Hong Kong Cultural Community 香港文化社、Manchester Stands With Hong Kong、Salford Hongkongers CIC和Trafford Hongkongers CIC今天聯同香港監察，去信英國商業及貿易大臣韋諾韜（Jonathan Reynolds），要求會面「討論為了我們在曼徹斯特尋求避風港的香港人及在香港營運而面對更高風險的英國企業，英中經濟貿易聯合委員會（UK-China Joint Economic and Trade Commission，JETCO）會議應該繼續中斷的理由。」
早前有傳媒報導指，商貿大臣正考慮重啟英中經貿聯委會會議。大臣是代表大曼徹斯特區Stalybridge and Hyde選區的國會議員，該區約有2萬名經BNO簽證計劃移居英國的香港人聚居。
信件強調JETCO經濟對話最初於2020年北京在香港強推《國家安全法》後中斷，之後特別指出《國安法》下發生的暴行［包括2023年13名流亡香港社運人士被懸紅100萬港元（10萬英鎊）通緝，以及數百名和平政治犯被監禁至今］持續在香港發生。當中包括今年三月通過的《維護國家安全條例》（俗稱「23條」），23條「對香港的自治、法治和基本自由造成更加嚴峻的後果。」
因此，信中指出：「鼓勵重建中英經濟關係可能會對中國再三違反《中英聯合聲明》和香港政府侵害人權的行為，傳達錯誤信息；亦可能向英國公司傳達錯誤信息，這些公司可能沒意識到香港存在新法律和安全風險。」
聯署曼城港人團體促請英國「考慮如何處理中國和香港事務時要極度仔細，因我們香港人在曼徹斯特出現，正正證明了香港政治環境每況愈下。」
請在此處閱覽信件全文。