Several civic groups are calling on Taiwan’s government to strengthen a mechanism to protect human rights and democracy in Hong Kong.
The groups include the Economic Democracy Union, the Taiwan Association for Human Rights, and the Taiwan Hong Kong Association. The call came Tuesday in response to recent changes to Hong Kong’s electoral system by China’s rubber-stamp body, the National People’s Congress.
At a press conference on Tuesday, democracy activists urged the government to assess the political and economic situation in Hong Kong and Macau and come up with a contingency plan.
They say that the Cabinet should submit a report to the legislature, with information on personal freedoms, freedom of the press, legislative elections, suffrage, judicial independence, as well as China’s interference in Hong Kong’s media.
They are also calling for a budget to bolster the plans. They say that Taiwan’s government should also consider annulling Hong Kong’s special status, if necessary.