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Rubio on Disqualification of Pro-democracy Candidates in Upcoming LegCo Election

Jul 30, 2020 | Press Releases

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations’ Subcommittee that oversees human rights and democracy and author of the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act (P.L. 116–76), issued the following statement after Hong Kong’s government announced it was barring 12 pro-democracy candidates from running in the upcoming Legislative Council (LegCo) election: 

“The actions of the Hong Kong government to disqualify 12 pro-democracy candidates from running in the Legislative Council election, including Joshua Wong and Lester Shum, strips the Hong Kong people of their voice and secures Beijing’s control of the city. The Chinese Communist Party’s determination to remake the city in its image is an outrage and a tragedy for those who support the cause of freedom. The U.S. and the international community must respond to these assaults by the CCP and assist Hong Kongers who will need protection from political persecution.” 

Rubio is Cochair of the bipartisan and bicameral Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC), the Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations’ Subcommittee that oversees human rights, and is a member of the Subcommittee on East Asia, the Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy.