Mike Levin: “I rise in support of the Hong Kong Reversion Act, which affirms United States support for the autonomy of Hong Kong.…”

“I rise in support of the Hong Kong Reversion Act, which affirms United States support for the autonomy of Hong Kong. When 21 other House Members and I visited Hong Kong and China in January, we saw firsthand the need for this legislation. Chinese Government representatives assured us that they would pursue the one China, two systems policy. The question was then and is now whether this means two political as well as two economic systems, whether political freedom will be preserved in Hong Kong alongside economic freedom. We are concerned about this because of the intrinsic value of political freedom itself, because political freedom enhances economic freedom, and because, as shown by nations like Singapore, economic freedom does not necessarily lead to political freedom. That is why we told C.H. Tung, China's supported chief executive for Hong Kong, that we were concerned about Beijing's decision to dissolve the democratically elected legislative counsel of Hong Kong. I asked Mr. Tung directly, "Do you personally assure us that within a year after July 1 there will be a democratically elected legislative body in Hong Kong?" He said "yes." We should insist that Mr. Tung abide by this promise to restore democracy next year. Unfortunately, events since we left Hong Kong have pointed in a different direction, restriction of the rights to speech, assembly, and association.”