Brushing Aside Opponents, Beijing Imposes Security Law on Hong Kong

A year after protesters in Hong Kong jubilantly defied Chinese rule, the national leader, Xi Jinping, has opened a long-term counteroffensive in the territory, signing a sweeping new security law that sets obedience to Beijing above the former British colony’s civil freedoms. Conceived in secrecy and passed with intimidating speed, the law has ignited uncertainty about the future of Hong Kong before any arrests under its sweeping powers to quash political activity and speech that challenge Beijing. Chinese officials and policy advisers have described the security law as part of a “second return” for Hong Kong, one, they suggest, that will scrub away a dangerous residue of Western influence and liberal values.

The new law ordered the Hong Kong government to ensure that media and internet services adhere to national security priorities, a demand that could cut into the territory’s lively undergrowth of independent civic groups and news outlets. The law also polices people beyond the borders of the territory.