Lawmakers Call for Sanctions After Hong Kong Puts Bounties on Overseas Activists

The leaders of the House Select Committee on China urged the Biden administration on Dec. 14 to sanction Chinese and Hong Kong officials who are responsible for a new crackdown on pro-democracy activists.

Reps. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., and Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill., the committee’s chairman and ranking member, respectively, issued their sanctions statement after Hong Kong police reportedly offered bounties for the arrests of five Hong Kong activists living abroad, including two in the U.S.

"Congress needs to take urgent action to address the [Chinese Communist Party's] transnational repression, and the Administration must immediately sanction the CCP and Hong Kong officials responsible for the imposition of these bounties," the lawmakers said.