II 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2922 

To reinstate reporting requirements related to United States-Hong Kong 

relations. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

NOVEMBER 13, 2014 

Mr. BROWN (for himself, Mr. CARDIN, Mr. RUBIO, Mr. WICKER, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, and Mr. MERKLEY) introduced the following bill; which was read 

twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

A BILL 

To reinstate reporting requirements related to United StatesHong Kong relations. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Hong Kong Human 

5 Rights and Democracy Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress makes the following findings: 

8 (1) The Joint Declaration of the Government of 

9 the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern 

10 Ireland and the Government of the People’s RepubVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:26 Nov 14, 2014 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2922.IS S2922

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1 lic of China on the Question of Hong Kong, done at 

2 Beijing December 19, 1984 (in this Act referred to 

3 as the ‘‘Joint Declaration’’)— 

4 (A) provided that the People’s Republic of 

5 China resumed sovereignty over Hong Kong on 

6 July 1, 1997; and 

7 (B) established a ‘‘high degree of auton8 omy’’ for Hong Kong except in matters of for9 eign affairs and defense. 

10 (2) The Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special 

11 Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of 

12 China (in this Act referred to as ‘‘Basic Law’’)— 

13 (A) guarantees Hong Kong a ‘‘high degree 

14 of autonomy’’ and separate executive, legisla15 tive, and independent judicial powers; 

16 (B) generally prohibits the central Govern17 ment of the People’s Republic of China from 

18 interfering in the affairs that Hong Kong ad19 ministers on its own according to the Basic 

20 Law; 

21 (C) protects the rights to free speech, 

22 press, assembly, and religion; 

23 (D) provides that the socialist system and 

24 policies shall not be practiced in Hong Kong 

25 and that Hong Kong’s capitalist system and 


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1 way of life shall remain unchanged for 50 years 

2 (the principle of ‘‘one country, two systems’’); 

3 (E) affirms the continuing applicability of 

4 the International Covenant on Civil and Polit5 ical Rights to Hong Kong; 

6 (F) provides that the head of the Hong 

7 Kong Special Administrative Region shall be 

8 the Chief Executive; 

9 (G) provides that ‘‘the ultimate aim is the 

10 selection of the Chief Executive by universal 

11 suffrage upon nomination by a broadly rep12 resentative nominating committee in accordance 

13 with democratic procedures’’; 

14 (H) provides that the legislature of the 

15 Hong Kong Special Administrative Region shall 

16 be the Legislative Council; and 

17 (I) provides that ‘‘the ultimate aim is the 

18 election of all the members of the Legislative 

19 Council by universal suffrage’’. 

20 (3) The National People’s Congress Standing 

21 Committee (NPCSC) determined on December 29, 

22 2007, that Hong Kong could elect the Chief Execu23 tive by universal suffrage beginning in 2017, and 

24 that Hong Kong could thereafter elect the Legisla25 tive Council by universal suffrage beginning in 2020. 


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1 (4) The Chief Executive is currently selected by 

2 an Election Committee consisting of 1,200 members. 

3 In order to run, candidates for Chief Executive must 

4 currently receive the support of one-eighth of the 

5 members of the Election Committee, the majority of 

6 whom reportedly support or have ties to the Chinese 

7 Communist Party. 

8 (5) On August 31, 2014, the NPCSC deter9 mined that the 2017 election for the Chief Executive 

10 could be held by universal suffrage but that Hong 

11 Kong voters could only choose from two to three 

12 candidates, each of whom is to be chosen by a ma13 jority of a nominating committee similar to the cur14 rent Election Committee that is heavily controlled by 

15 pro-Beijing members. 

16 (6) International standards for elections, in17 cluding Article 21 of the Universal Declaration of 

18 Human Rights and Article 25 of the International 

19 Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, guarantee 

20 citizens the right to vote and to be elected in gen21 uine periodic elections by universal and equal suf22 frage without unreasonable restrictions. 

23 (7) Hundreds of thousands of Hong Kong resi24 dents have consistently and peacefully expressed 

25 their dissatisfaction with the electoral reform plans 


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1 of the Hong Kong government and the Government 

2 of the People’s Republic of China, including the Au3 gust 2014 NPCSC decision, and have called for a 

4 genuine choice in elections that meet international 

5 standards. Their peaceful and orderly protests have 

6 set an example for other democratic movements 

7 around the world, including those in mainland China 

8 who continue to fight for their fundamental free9 doms. 

10 (8) Media reports indicate that Hong Kong po11 lice used tear gas and pepper spray against dem12 onstrators on September 28, 2014, and that police 

13 allegedly failed to adequately protect demonstrators 

14 from mobs of counter-protestors, some of whom had 

15 affiliations with gangs known as ‘‘triads’’, who beat 

16 students and forcibly tried to remove them from 

17 their places of protest. There have also been several 

18 accusations of excessive use of force by the Hong 

19 Kong Police which are under investigation. 

20 (9) The United States enjoys close economic, 

21 social, and cultural ties with Hong Kong. According 

22 to the Department of State, 60,000 United States 

23 citizens live in Hong Kong, and 1,400 United States 

24 businesses have offices there. According to the Office 

25 of the United States Trade Representative, Hong 


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1 Kong is the United States 18th largest trade part2 ner and 9th largest goods export market. 

3 (10) Hong Kong’s unique status as an inter4 national finance center where the rule of law and the 

5 rights and freedoms of its citizens are protected has 

6 served as the foundation for Hong Kong’s stability 

7 and prosperity. 

8 (11) Section 301 of the Hong Kong Policy Act 

9 of 1992 (22 U.S.C. 5731) required the Secretary of 

10 State to issue reports on conditions in Hong Kong 

11 of interest to the United States, including the devel12 opment of democratic institutions in Hong Kong, 

13 and the last report under section 301 was issued on 

14 June 30, 2007. 

15 (12) Failure to establish a genuine democratic 

16 option to nominate and elect the Chief Executive of 

17 Hong Kong by 2017 and to establish open and di18 rect democratic elections for all members of the 

19 Hong Kong Legislative Council by 2020 would re20 duce confidence in the commitment of the Govern21 ment of the People’s Republic of China to uphold its 

22 obligations under international law, and would erode 

23 the ability of Hong Kong to retain a high degree of 

24 autonomy. 


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1 (13) During an October 2014 session, the 

2 United Nations Human Rights Committee, con3 sisting of 18 independent experts, reviewed China’s 

4 compliance with the International Covenant on Civil 

5 and Political Rights with respect to Hong Kong. Ac6 cording to the session’s chair, the Committee agreed 

7 on ‘‘the need to ensure universal suffrage, which 

8 means both the right to be elected as well as the 

9 right to vote. The main concerns of Committee 

10 members were focused on the right to stand for elec11 tions without unreasonable restrictions.’’. Another 

12 Committee member said that the ‘‘committee doesn’t 

13 want candidates filtered. The problem is that Beijing 

14 wants to vet candidates.’’. 

15 (14) The Congressional-Executive Commission 

16 on China’s 2014 Annual Report found that press 

17 freedom in Hong Kong is under threat, including re18 ports of ‘‘violent attacks on individuals associated 

19 with the press, self-censorship among journalists, 

20 and pressure from the Hong Kong and central gov21 ernments and mainland Chinese businesses.’’. 

22 (15) The Hong Kong Journalists Association’s 

23 2014 Annual Report noted that Hong Kong journal24 ists rated self-censorship at 6.9 on a 10-point scale, 


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1 which the Association considered a ‘‘low level’’ of 

2 press freedom. 

3 (16) Hong Kong ranked 61st among 180 coun4 tries in Reporters Without Borders’ 2014 World 

5 Press Freedom Index, down three places from the 

6 previous year and a significant decline from 2002 

7 when Hong Kong ranked 18th. 

8 (17) By providing timely, uncensored, accurate 

9 information in their native language, United States 

10 international broadcast services, through the Broad11 casting Board of Governors, help those living in 

12 countries with poor human rights records, such as 

13 China, to better defend their human rights and hold 

14 their government accountable. 

15 SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY. 

16 It is the policy of the United States— 

17 (1) to reaffirm the principles and objectives set 

18 forth in the United States-Hong Kong Policy Act of 

19 1992, namely that— 

20 (A) the United States has ‘‘a strong inter21 est in the continued vitality, prosperity, and 

22 stability of Hong Kong’’; 

23 (B) ‘‘support for democratization is a fun24 damental principle of United States foreign pol25 icy’’; 


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1 (C) ‘‘the human rights of the people of 

2 Hong Kong are of great importance to the 

3 United States and are directly relevant to 

4 United States interests in Hong Kong’’; 

5 (D) human rights ‘‘serve as a basis for 

6 Hong Kong’s continued economic prosperity’’; 

7 and 

8 (E) Hong Kong must remain sufficiently 

9 autonomous from the People’s Republic of 

10 China to justify a different treatment under a 

11 particular law of the United States, or any pro12 vision thereof, from that accorded the People’s 

13 Republic of China; 

14 (2) to support the democratic aspirations of the 

15 people of Hong Kong, as guaranteed to them by the 

16 Joint Declaration, the Basic Law, the International 

17 Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and the Uni18 versal Declaration of Human Rights; 

19 (3) to urge the Government of the People’s Re20 public of China to uphold its commitments to Hong 

21 Kong, including allowing the people of Hong Kong 

22 to rule Hong Kong with a high degree of autonomy 

23 and without undue interference, and ensuring that 

24 Hong Kong voters freely enjoy the right to elect the 


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1 Chief Executive and all members of the Hong Kong 

2 Legislative Council by universal suffrage; 

3 (4) to support the establishment by 2017 of a 

4 genuine democratic option to freely and fairly nomi5 nate and elect the Chief Executive of Hong Kong, 

6 and the establishment by 2020 of open and direct 

7 democratic elections for all members of the Hong 

8 Kong Legislative Council; and 

9 (5) to support press freedom and journalistic 

10 independence, including the continuation of inter11 national broadcasting programming in Cantonese 

12 that is readily accessible to Cantonese speaking pop13 ulations in China and in Hong Kong. 

14 SEC. 4. REINSTATEMENT OF REPORTING REQUIREMENTS 

15 RELATED TO UNITED STATES-HONG KONG 

16 RELATIONS. 

17 Section 301 of the United States-Hong Kong Policy 

18 Act of 1992 (22 U.S.C. 5731) is amended— 

19 (1) by striking ‘‘Not later than’’ and all that 

20 follows through ‘‘the Secretary of State’’ and insert21 ing ‘‘Not later than March 31, 2015, and annually 

22 thereafter for 10 years or until such earlier date 

23 that the Secretary of State certifies that Hong Kong 

24 has held free and fair elections for two consecutive 


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1 Chief Executive and two consecutive Legislative 

2 Council periods, the Secretary of State’’; 

3 (2) by striking ‘‘Speaker of the House of Rep4 resentatives’’ and inserting ‘‘chairman of the Com5 mittee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Rep6 resentatives’’; 

7 (3) in paragraph (7), by striking ‘‘; and’’ and 

8 inserting a semicolon; 

9 (4) in paragraph (8), by striking the period at 

10 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

11 (5) by adding at the end the following new 

12 paragraph: 

13 ‘‘(9) matters in which Hong Kong is given sep14 arate treatment under the laws of the United States 

15 from that accorded to the People’s Republic of 

16 China and in accordance with this Act.’’. 

17 SEC. 5. TREATMENT OF HONG KONG UNDER UNITED 

18 STATES LAW. 

19 Title II of the United States-Hong Kong Policy Act 

20 of 1992 (22 U.S.C. 5721 et seq.) is amended by inserting 

21 after section 202 the following new section: 

22 ‘‘SEC. 202a. TREATMENT OF HONG KONG UNDER UNITED 

23 STATES LAW. 

24 ‘‘(a) PRESIDENTIAL CERTIFICATION REQUIRE25 MENT.—Hong Kong is ineligible for treatment different 


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1 from that accorded the People’s Republic of China under 

2 United States laws, agreements, or arrangements enacted 

3 or entered into after the date of the enactment of this 

4 Act unless the President certifies to Congress that Hong 

5 Kong is sufficiently autonomous to justify such different 

6 treatment. 

7 ‘‘(b) WAIVER AUTHORITY.—The President may 

8 waive the application of subsection (a) if the President— 

9 ‘‘(1) determines that such a waiver is in the na10 tional security interests of the United States; and 

11 ‘‘(2) on or before the date on which the waiver 

12 takes effect, submits to the Committee on Foreign 

13 Relations of the Senate and the Committee on For14 eign Affairs of the House of Representatives a notice 

15 of and justification for the waiver.’’. 

Æ 


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