China to set up ‘security agency’ in Hong Kong

China will set up a “national security agency” in Hong Kong to oversee a forthcoming new law aimed at cracking down on dissent in the city, state media said on Saturday. The new law also would override any existing Hong Kong laws that may conflict with it once it is implemented, Xinhua news agency said in a report.

The report followed the conclusion of a meeting in Beijing of China’s top law-making committee that reviewed draft provisions aimed at snuffing out the pro-democracy movement that has rocked the city.

The future security agency would be established by China’s Central government and would “supervise, guide, coordinate, and support” the maintenance of national security in the territory, Xinhua said.

Xinhua said the eventual law would criminalise “secession, subversion of state power, terrorism, and colluding with foreign and external forces to endanger national security.”