Hong Kong Judges See Risks in Proposed Extradition Changes

Hong Kong Judges See Risks in Proposed Extradition Changes
Judges take part in a ceremony to mark the beginning of the legal year in Hong Kong, China on Jan. 14, 2019. Tyrone Siu/Reuters
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HONG KONG—Some Hong Kong judges fear they are being put on a collision course with Beijing as the special administrative region’s government pushes for sweeping legal changes that would for the first time allow fugitives captured in Hong Kong to be sent to mainland China for trial.

Three senior judges and 12 leading commercial and criminal lawyers say the changes, called the Fugitive Offenders Ordinance amendment bill, mark one of the starkest challenges to Hong Kong’s legal system and are increasingly troubling its business, political and diplomatic communities.