Andrew Wan Says Rendition Law Will Be Abused

Democratic Party lawmaker Andrew Wan has warned that a plan to change Hong Kong's extradition laws may be used to force the SAR to hand over dissidents in the city.

Currently, there's no extradition agreement between the SAR government and the central government.

Speaking on RTHK's Letter to Hong Kong, Mr Wan criticised the mainland for having a poor track record in the rule of law and human rights.

He added that there's no way Hong Kong can ensure that anyone extradited to the mainland will receive a fair trial.

Officials say the amendments will close a loophole that came to light last year when a Hong Kong teenager returned from Taiwan after allegedly killing his pregnant girlfriend during a Valentine's trip to Taipei. He remains in Hong Kong though, because the two places have no extradition agreement.

He could not be deported because two laws - the Fugitive Offenders Ordinance and the Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Ordinance - do not apply to "other jurisdictions of the People's Republic of China".

"The Fugitive Offenders Ordinance covers 46 kinds of crimes," Wan said. "The Chinese government can select any of them and make a custom-made offence for dissidents and foreigners, and ask the Hong Kong government for extradition."

He said the central government had done this before, citing the 2015 kidnappings of five Causeway Bay booksellers, noting that one of the men was accused of having been involved in a car accident on the mainland.

The Chief Executive, Carrie Lam, has defended the planned law change, dismissing the concerns as "wild imagination".