University of Hong Kong students held a march on campus on Friday, waving American flags and singing The Star Spangled Banner in a bid to urge Washington to support a bill that could pave the way for diplomatic action and economic sanctions against the city’s government.

The bill, the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act of 2019, is currently under review by the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Beijing, meanwhile, has warned against efforts to “disrupt Hong Kong with foreign support”.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday threw her support behind the bill and said she would bring it to a vote “as soon as possible”.

During the HKU march on Friday, a group of around 50 students held pro-American banners and chanted “Resist Beijing! Liberate Hong Kong!”.

Some protesters appealed directly to President Donald Trump. One placard read “make Hong Kong great again” – a reference to Trump’s campaign slogan – and others called for the US president to immediately sign the bill into law if it should pass through the House.

View photos Students appeal for US support for Hong Kong’s democracy on Friday. Photo: Winson Wong More

“We are extremely grateful for the bipartisan support for the democracy act. We are forever in debt to you all,” said a student who gave his name as Martin in a prepared statement. Martin said the crowd used the American flag and national anthem because they are “freedoms and human rights that surpass country borders”.

Anti-Beijing banners were also present at the rally, including one that said “God kill the Chinese Community Party”. An event organiser who gave his name as Derek said the anti-Communist Party sentiment was because many in the crowd believed the “authoritarian” party had put the city “in a humanitarian crisis”.

A postgraduate student surnamed Li said Beijing’s anger was expected, but he said they were not demanding independence – only democracy.

“What we are pursuing is merely the five demands, with the universal suffrage being a root cause of the crisis,” he said. “The US flag and anthem are symbols of freedoms and human rights.”

He was referring to four requests that remain unmet since Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor acceded to one by withdrawing the extradition bill. The others include launching an independent inquiry into police conduct during the protests and the implementation of universal suffrage.

Li believed the US bill might have put pressure on Beijing because it would permit the US to sanction Chinese officials deemed responsible for “undermining basic freedoms in Hong Kong”.

View photos Posters on University of Hong Kong campus denounce the alleged treatment of protesters at San Uk Ling Holding Centre. Photo: Winson Wong More

An American named Rob, who has been in the city for a month following the protests, said he found it ironic for students to appeal to Trump, whom he called “a mentally ill person” and “a very, very sick human being”.

“The US society is also being serious threatened in a fundamental way because of the political division taking place in the America,” said Rob, who travelled to HKU to attend the rally.

Even so, he said he understood the fears among Hong Kong protesters over Beijing’s alleged encroachment on civil liberties in Hong Kong.

Separately, posters claiming that protesters had been raped and tortured in San Uk Ling Holding Centre were plastered all over the HKU campus.

The holding centre in Sheung Shui has been the subject of controversy after 31 of 54 protesters arrested on August 11 and detained there were later hospitalised, six with fractured bones.

The police at a press conference on Friday continued to strongly deny the allegations, calling them “malicious slander”.

This article University of Hong Kong students wave American flags and march in appeal for US to pass Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act first appeared on South China Morning Post

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