Hong Kong is supposed to be a semiautonomous enclave of China, "one country, two systems." But China is moving to impose a sweeping national security law on the city, which critics say is illegal.
On the anniversary of the People's Republic of China, the country's top diplomat in Washington says it has "no interest in global dominance or hegemony; we just want our people to have a better life."
In a land dominated for thousands of years by absolute monarchs, the move is historically significant and seen by Chinese liberals as a big step backward.