Hello and welcome to the Intelligence on Economist Radio. I'm your host, Jason Palmer.

Every weekday we provide a fresh perspective on the events shaping your world.

The pandemic has brought with it plenty of worrying downward trends, but one curve is encouraging.

Lockdowns have driven down rates of crime. Well, some crimes.

Crisis is making others harder to track and even creating new nefarious opportunities.

And the alcohol industry had been enjoying something of a golden age before the pandemic.

Even though many of us have been indulging a bit more under lockdown,

the booze business now seems destined for a long-term fall.

But first...

China's annual parliamentary meeting the National People's Congress closed today,

with an overwhelming vote in favor of drafting sweeping new national security legislation for Hong Kong.

The proposed law would allow Beijing to impose its own restrictions on the territory,

to silence its critics, to put down demonstrations like those that gripped Hong Kong for months last year.

In response, pro-democracy activists defy government warnings and march through the city to protest against the bill.

They fear that Hong Kong's way of life in shriened under the principle of one country, two systems, will soon come to an end.

It's a concern shared by America's administration.

Yesterday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told Congress that Hong Kong no longer merits special treatment under American law.

The details of Beijing's plan are still being decided as is America's formal response,

but the battle lines for Hong Kong's future are being drawn.

Well, the significance of what Mike Pompeo has said is quite profound.

Dominic Ziegler is the economist, senior Asia correspondent, and writes Banyan, our column on Asian Affairs.

Under American law, the Secretary of State has to inform Congress each year about whether Hong Kong is a separate place from China,

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