A Perfect Storm: Hong Kong–Mainland Rendition of Fugitive Offenders

Abstract

On 9 June 2019, Hong Kong became the focus of international attention as hundreds of thousands of demonstrators marched on Hong Kong Island to oppose the imminent enactment of a legislative bill that would introduce a rendition arrangement, inter alia, between Hong Kong and China. The Bill not only led to the largest protests in the history of Hong Kong, it also brought about the most serious crisis of governance since the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. This article seeks to introduce the legal and political background of the Bill, and to explain the nature of the controversy in the context of the tensions and contradictions generated by China's policy of 'One Country, Two Systems', which has been applied to Hong Kong since the handover.