Live under Democratic Backsliding: National Security Law in Hong Kong

Session Submission Type: Created Panel

Session Description

The People’s Republic of China has tightened its political controls at home and abroad. Most
notably, the implementation of the National Security Law (NSL) in Hong Kong has dramatically
changed the political landscape of the former British colony. While the changes are still
unfolding, their impacts have already been felt in the economic, social, and political realms. In
this panel, we have five papers evaluating various impacts of the NSL and discuss the
implications on Taiwan.
Eliza Lee’s paper provides a historical context of Hong Kong’s recent authoritarian turn,
highlighting the potential instability of liberal autocracy. The paper by Ruilin Lai examines the
escalation of judicial repression in Hong Kong. Using a survey experiment, Lai studies how the
use of judicial repression affects citizens’ support of the opposition. Stan Hok-Wui Wong and
Sanho Chung focus on the performance of the legislature under the NSL. Using text analysis,
they examine how the absence of the opposition in the new legislature affects the quality of
legislative deliberation. Samson Yuen and Gary Tang analyze an important social repercussion
of the NSL: the migration decision of the citizens. Revisiting Hirschman’s exit-voice dynamics,
they reveal the nuanced impacts of group loyalty on individuals’ migration decisions. Maggie
Shum provides a different perspective on migration by examining how the politics of the
hometown affects Hong Kong migrants’ vote choice in US elections.

Chair: Wei-chin Lee (Wake Forest University)
Discussants: Jean Hong (University of Michigan, Ann Arbor), Wen-chin Wu (Academia Sinica)

Sub Unit

• Related Groups / Conference Group on Taiwan Studies

Individual Presentations

• Liberalized Authoritarianism Is Not a Stable Equilibrium - Eliza W. Y. Lee, University of Hong Kong

• Judicial Repression and Opposition to Autocracy: Evidence from Hong Kong - Ruilin Lai, Washington University in St. Louis

• Evaluating the Quality of Legislative Deliberation in Hong Kong under the NSL - Stan Hok-Wui Wong, University of St. Thomas; Sanho Chung, University of Arizona

• Exploring Exit-Voice Dynamics under Democratic Backsliding - Gary Tang; Samson Yuen, Hong Kong Baptist University

• Hong Kong Diaspora and Their Vote Choice in the 2024 US Presidential Election - Maggie Shum, Penn State Erie, the Behrend College

Chair

• Wei-chin Lee Wake Forest University

Discussants

• Ji Yeon (Jean) Hong University of Michigan

• Wen-Chin Wu Academia Sinica