Key facts
- Hong Kong proposes legislation allowing the city leader to define national security offenses.
- The move follows the 2020 imposition of a national security law by Beijing.
- The 2019 democracy protests in Hong Kong preceded the national security law.
Hong Kong is considering new legislation that would grant the city's leader the authority to decide what activities constitute a national security offense. This proposal comes in the wake of significant pro-democracy protests that occurred in 2019. Following these demonstrations, Beijing implemented a national security law in 2020, which has since been utilized to arrest numerous prominent activists.