Hong Kong rolled out some seriously sweeping new security laws. As of July 1st, there’s a new law pushing Communist Party ideology into schools, and it’s written broadly enough that human rights groups say it could be used to go after people and organizations anywhere in the world. Not exactly reassuring if you’ve got family or friends who’ve left Hong Kong for Canada.
New rules mean police can now demand access to your phone, your laptop, your office no warrant needed. Say no, and you’re looking at jail time and a hefty fine. For Canadian banks and businesses operating there, this means comply with Hong Kong and break Canadian privacy law, or protect your data and risk having an employee thrown in jail.
A 55-year-old activist with official UN refugee status was literally hours from boarding a flight to resettle in Canada when Thai authorities detained her under pressure from Beijing. Hong Kong police have also put bounties on 19 activists living overseas, some as high as a million Hong Kong dollars. This is what’s called transnational repression, and it’s happening in real time.
Meanwhile, big names like Jimmy Lai and Joshua Wong remain behind bars, alongside teenagers and vulnerable people caught up in increasingly broad definitions of “dissent.”
The Hong Kong Pathway, Canada’s special immigration lane meant to be a lifeline for people fleeing this, is buried. Over 33,000 applications are stuck in limbo, wait times have ballooned to over 10 years, and the whole program is set to expire August 31, 2026. Advocates are calling it a broken promise.
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