This is John Batchelor, speaking with colleague Mary Kessel, who was many years in Hong Kong for the Wall Street Journal Editorial Board, observing the crushing of Hong Kong by the latest decision by the legislative council, the Hong Kongers themselves to close down

dissent, to increase surveillance. In other words, to shut the city up in a cage, Mary observes a tragedy.

Here's Mary Kessel on the end of Hong Kong as a free city of joy. Well, many hundreds of thousands have already left John if they had the capability

to leave.

Article 23 is a tragedy for the Hong Kong people.

It represents the final blow to whatever freedoms were left in the territory.

It makes Hong Kong more of a security state than even mainland China.

It refers to a provision that was negotiated in the basic law, which was the mini constitution

that Hong Kong enjoy freedoms under and it puts everyone at risk.

Hong Kongers and foreigners there because it gives China the quote unquote right to haul people over the border into their

lawless justice system where they torture people and do whatever else they need to do

to extract confessions. It's a tragedy. More of this later.