A
primary election held by Hong Kong's democratic opposition may have been illegal under the new security law, China said Monday, in a statement that shows how far the goalposts have moved just two weeks after the sweeping legislation was imposed on the city. More than 600,000 people took part in the vote over the weekend, designed to narrow down the number of pro-democracy candidates in September elections to the city's legislature. Similar efforts have been tried in previous years, but this was the most organized yet, as the opposition aims to seize a historic majority in spite of recent obstacles, not least the
new security law.
Imposed by Beijing on the city
on June 30, the legislation criminalizes secession, subversion, terrorism, and collusion with foreign forces. Officials previously said it will
affect a tiny handful of Hong Kongers, while critics pointed to its broad scope and ill-defined offenses as reason for alarm.
In a
statement late Monday, the Liaison Office, Beijing's top representative to Hong Kong, said the primary election contravened the law -- raising the possibility hundreds of thousands of people were now implicated in an offense.
