House Bill Aims to Restrict Certain Exports to Hong Kong Police
A House bill would increase export controls on defense items to Hong Kong police, including “nonlethal crowd control items.” The bill, introduced Sept. 10, would require the Trump administration to restrict export license approvals of certain “covered defense articles and…
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services” to the Hong Kong Disciplined Services. If the bill is passed, the covered items would be determined by the Commerce and State departments and sent in a report to Congress. The bill mentions “water cannon trucks, tear gas, rubber bullets, sponge grenades, beanbag rounds, batons, pepper spray, pepper balls and projectile launchers,” as possible options. “I am deeply concerned that American-made police equipment is being used to violently crack down on peaceful protesters in Hong Kong,” Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., who helped introduce the bill, said in a statement. “We ought not to allow American companies to sell this equipment to foreign governments when we see evidence that it is being used for immoral and unjust purposes.” The bill is titled the “Placing Restrictions on Teargas Exports and Crowd Control Technology to Hong Kong Act,” or the PROTECT Hong Kong Act.