The Department of Foreign affairs is warning Australians in Hong Kong to 'reconsider your need to remain' in the region as China's sweeping new national security law poses an 'increased risk of detention on vaguely defined national security grounds'.
Australians living in Hong Kong have been warned to "reconsider your need to remain" in the Chinese territory after Beijing imposed new national security laws that could see foreigners arbitrarily detained.
The warning from the Department of Foreign Affairs is the second escalation in travel advice for the former British colony in a week. There are up to 100,000 Australians living in Hong Kong, Australia's second largest contingent overseas. In updated travel advice announced on Thursday, the department said the legislation, which is designed to stamp out dissent in the Chinese territory, "could be interpreted broadly".
The flag of China is flown behind a pair of surveillance cameras outside the Central Government Offices in Hong Kong.Residents have been warned by Hong Kong police that pro-independence chants, flags and blank pieces of paper raised in defiance, could be in violation of the new legislation. The legislation is so broad that Australians who are accused of undermining the Chinese state in Australia could be arrested on arrival in Hong Kong.
"The full extent of the law and how it will be applied is not yet clear. You could break the law without intending to.
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