Introduction
"Mr. Chair and distinguished Members of the committee, thank you for the opportunity to speak here today. My name is Frances Hui. I am the policy and advocacy coordinator of the Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong Foundation. I am a native Hongkonger, born and raised in Hong Kong, and have been an activist since I was 14. In 2020, I left Hong Kong to seek asylum after China imposed the national security law in Hong Kong. Eventually, in 2021, I became the first Hong Kong activist to secure asylum in the U.S. About a year ago, the Hong Kong authorities issued an arrest warrant and HK$ 1 million bounties on me because of my international advocacy.
I always find it important to remind Americans and people living in democracies that freedom is not free; it is something that requires lots of fighting for and continuous defending. I say that from the experience of growing up in Hong Kong, once a relatively free and open society under the rule of the Chinese Communist Party, then having to defend these values, and witnessing the fall of this city when these rights and values were stripped away from our people. I say this as I benefited from freedom in America both times when I was a college student in the U.S. and when I needed to seek safe haven when the CCP finally crushed freedom in Hong Kong.
But even when I am not in Hong Kong, the repression pertains. In the following time, I will dive deep into some of my personal accounts as a target of transnational repression carried out by Beijing. I believe my past experience as a student in American institutions and a dissident from Hong Kong has given me a unique position to testify on CCP’s extensive campaign of transnational repression.
Nearly a century ago, the Foreign Agents Registration Act was enacted to ensure open disclosure of entities working for and with foreign entities for political or advocacy work. Despite its flaws over the years, it has served as a first line of defense for U.S. national security to track the activities of foreign adversaries on U.S. soil. Having said that, as some of my colleagues have discussed and will discuss, more work needs to be done to address the problem of the Federal FARA. However, having a foreign agents disclosure law that reflects the issue of transnational repression in the state legislature will send a strong message to other states and the Federal government to follow suit."
Executive Summary of Frances Hui's testimony:
Personal Experience with Transnational Repression: Hui, who sought asylum in the U.S. after facing persecution under China's national security law, continued to face threats, including a HK$1 million bounty issued by Hong Kong authorities due to her international advocacy.
CCP Influence in the U.S.: Hui described how the CCP targets not only Hongkongers but also Uyghurs, Tibetans, Taiwanese, and Chinese dissidents through a sophisticated campaign of transnational repression. She highlighted the CCP's influence in American universities, using proxy organizations like the Confucius Institute to suppress free speech.
CCP’s Infiltration in American Higher Education: During her time in U.S. universities, Hui faced intimidation from Chinese international students who reported her for discussing sensitive topics, such as the Uyghur genocide. She also received death threats after writing an article titled "I am from Hong Kong, not China."
4. Death Threats and Surveillance: Hui recounted receiving death threats during her activism, particularly after organizing rallies supporting Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement. One such incident involved a counter-protest organized by Chinese patriots in Boston, with threats of gun violence and surveillance by individuals linked to the Chinese government.
5. Importance of Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) on Both Federal and State Level: Hui emphasized the need for robust foreign agent disclosure laws, including in Oklahoma, to combat transnational repression. She pointed out loopholes in the federal FARA and advocated for stronger legislation to identify and criminalize foreign influence operations more effectively.
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Frances Hui is the author of this testimony and the Policy and Advocacy Coordinator at the Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong Foundation.
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