CNA Staff, Jun 30, 2020 / 12:00 pm
Cardinal Joseph Zen, the bishop emeritus of Hong Kong, has warned that new security laws in the province could lead to a clamp down on religious freedom.
In a series of videos posted Tuesday on the Facebook page "Catholics Concerned about the Hong Kong National Security Law Group," Zen said that he had 'no confidence" in religious freedom protections in the new security law.
On May 28, the Chinese legislature approved a resolution imposing "security laws" on Hong Kong. These laws aim to criminalize anything Beijing considers "foreign interference," secessionist activities, or subversion of state power, and will permit Chinese security forces to operate in the city.
Although the full provisions of the law were only released on June 30, last week Cardinal John Tong Hon, Zen's successor as bishop and currently the administrator of the diocese, publicly voiced support for the measures, and said that it was not a threat to religious freedom.