2021 was the legislature’s most productive year yet in the New Era. The NPC Standing Committee (NPCSC)
was in session for a total of 25 ½ days. It held six regular sessions and, following the Communist Party’s call
for additional legislative sessions, a seventh full-length session in January. The NPCSC also held a one-day
special session in late March to approve sweeping changes to Hong Kong’s electoral system. Earlier that
month, the 13th NPC met for its fourth annual session and adopted a decision that initiated the process for
overhauling Hong Kong’s election rules. Altogether, the NPC and its Standing Committee enacted 15 new
laws and approved major changes to 18, likely setting a record for the number of major bills adopted in a
given year. The legislature also approved or updated 10 quasi-legislative decisions; an additional 15 bills are
pending as of today. Consistent with the Party's directive to focus on legislation in "foreign-related fields" [涉外领域], the legislature took a number of actions in this area. The NPCSC enacted a Coast Guard Law
[海警法] and a Land Borders Law [陆地国界法], prompting criticisms from China's neighbours. It adopted
an Anti–Foreign Sanctions Law [反外国制裁法], authorizing government agencies to take countermeasures
against foreign sanctions. It also wrote extraterritoriality provisions in other legislation, including the two
data laws mentioned above, to extend the territorial reach of Chinese laws.
HONGKONG: On March 11, the NPC adopted a decision authorizing the NPCSC to “improve” Hong
Kong’s electoral system by ensuring that the city will be governed by “patriots” only. Less than three weeks
later, the NPCSC unanimously approved revisions to Annexes I and II to the Hong Kong Basic Law, which
govern, respectively, the selection of the Chief Executive and formation of the Legislative Council. The
revised Annexes, in short, reduced the number of directly elected seats in the Legislative Council, introduced
strict nomination and vetting requirements, and barred Hong Kong from initiating future political reforms on
its own. As a result, no major pro-democracy party participated in December’s Legislative Council general
election, and the voter turnout for directly elected seats hit a record low of 30.2%.
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