US Senators Say They Back HK Protesters

A bipartisan group of US senators has released a statement in support of the protesters in Hong Kong opposed to the SAR's proposed changes to the extradition laws.

The group includes Republican former presidential candidate Mitt Romney, as well as his party colleagues Marco Rubio, Tom Cotton, Marsha Blackburn, Ben Sasse, Deb Fischer and Jim Inhofe. Democrats Chris Van Hollen, Joe Manchin and Chris Murphy also signed the statement.

"The extradition law proposed by Beijing loyalists in Hong Kong would allow political dissidents, minorities, and foreign travelers in Hong Kong to be spirited away to China’s secret police on the mainland," they wrote.

"The people of Hong Kong are assembling in the streets to resist this threat to their freedom and send a message to the Chinese Communist Party.

“Hong Kong demonstrators know what happened in Tiananmen Square in 1989, unlike so many Chinese on the mainland. They know the risk they run by defying the Chinese Communist Party. The demonstrators’ courage in the face of threats, police batons, and tear gas is an example for the world to follow. We support these demonstrators as they fight for freedom and call on Hong Kong and Chinese authorities to respect their right to peacefully protest.”

The statement comes after the Democratic speaker of the US House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, threw her support behind the protesters yesterday. She said Congress would review US ties with Hong Kong if the extradition bill passed.