Hong Kong activists visit Capitol Hill

Hong Kong pro-democracy activists visited Capitol Hill on Wednesday as American politicians publicly supported them and their protest.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) welcomed the activists to Capitol Hill in an effort to show China that the United States backs the protesters. She thanked the activists for “challenging the conscience” of the Chinese government and the world, The Associated Press reported.

Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) told the activists, “America stands with you.”

Hong Kong activist Joshua Wong testified before the Congressional-Executive Commission on China on Tuesday, pleading with representatives to support the semiautonomous Chinese territory.

“The stakes have never been higher,” Voice of America reported Wong said.

Celebrity activist Denise Ho urged the committee Tuesday to support the Hong Kong Human Rights Democracy Act, aimed to put pressure on China by demonstrating U.S. support for the pro-democracy protests, Voice of America reported.

“If Hong Kong falls, it would easily become the springboard for the totalitarian regime of China to push its rules and priorities overseas, utilizing its economic powers to conform others to their communist values,” Voice of America reported Ho said. 

Hong Kong erupted in protests in June following a proposed law to allow for the extradition of residents in China. That law has since been withdrawn, but activists are still pushing for reformed human rights in the territory.