The Trump administration slapped sanctions on top Chinese Communist Party officials Friday, barring them and possibly some family members from entering the U.S. as punishment for curtailing Hong Kong’s autonomy.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced the move, saying he was carrying out President Trump’s orders. The move was also called for by a congressional law.
Mr. Pompeo said the visa restrictions apply to current and former CCP officials “who are believed to be responsible for, or complicit in, undermining Hong Kong’s high degree of autonomy.”
“The United States calls on China to honor its commitments and obligations in the Sino-British Joint Declaration — namely that Hong Kong will ‘enjoy a high degree of autonomy’ and that human rights and fundamental freedoms, including the freedoms of expression and peaceful assembly, will be protected by law and respected by governing authorities in Hong Kong,” Mr. Pompeo said.
Depending on how deeply the sanctions cut, it could be a serious hindrance to the lifestyle of some senior Chinese families — particularly if Mr. Pompeo applies the sanctions to party officials’ children who want to study at American universities.
U.S. administrations have been reluctant to impose visa sanctions on China in the past, even though the law would allow it for other infractions such as Beijing’s refusal to cooperate on the return of Chinese deportees.
But the Trump administration was pressed by members of Congress, who last year passed the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, which required the president to certify whether China was abrogating Hong Kong’s autonomy and, if so, to impose penalties.
Among those are visa sanctions and special free trade benefits Hong Kong has enjoyed despite the 1997 handover of control from the U.K. to China.
This week the Senate approved follow-up legislation that would allow the government to freeze assets belonging to officials deemed to be involved in violating Hong Kong’s autonomy.
Mr. Pompeo in late May announced that Hong Kong is no longer autonomous from China. In his statement Friday he said Chinese Communist Party officials have pressured Hong Kong to arrest pro-democracy activists and to block pro-democracy candidates from politics. He also pointed to Beijing’s move to impose a national security law on the territory.
Rep. Chris Smith, a New Jersey Republican who sponsored the House version of the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, said Mr. Pompeo made the right call.
“It is especially gratifying for me to see the administration take a stand for freedom and against tyranny,” he said.
The sanctions are the latest escalation between the U.S. and China, building on an already tense relationship over the coronavirus outbreak.
Yet the administration is delaying other sanctions over China’s treatment of its Uyghur population, apparently to avoid upsetting Mr. Trump’s attempts to strike a trade deal with President Xi Jinping.
