By Greg Torode
HONG KONG, July 1 (Reuters) - Hong Kong's extradition bill, which would cover Hong Kong's 7.4 million residents as well as foreign and Chinese nationals in the city, would allow criminal suspects to be sent to mainland China for trial in courts controlled by the Communist Party.
Opponents of the bill, which was indefinitely suspended after violent protests, see it as a threat to the rule of law in the former British colony and would put them at the mercy of China's justice system where human rights are not guaranteed.
Protesters are demanding the bill be completely scrapped.
WHAT DOES THE EXTRADITION BILL INVOLVE?
The Hong Kong government introduced the proposals in February, putting forward sweeping changes that would simplify case-by-case extraditions of criminal suspects to countries beyond the 20 with which Hong Kong has extradition treaties.
It explicitly allows extraditions from Hong Kong to greater China - including the mainland, Taiwan and Macau - for the first time, closing what Hong Kong government officials have repeatedly described as a loophole that they say has allowed the city to become a haven for criminals.
Hong Kong's leader would initiate and finally approve an extradition following a request from a foreign jurisdiction. A city judge must also approve or reject such a request, though the scope to consider evidence or the "quality of justice" that a fugitive would face once surrendered to the requesting jurisdiction would be limited.
Some legal experts say the government's description of judges as "gatekeepers" for such extradition requests is misleading. The bill also removes oversight of extradition arrangements by the city's Legislative Council.
While the bill has been indefinitely suspended, if it became law, it would be possible for mainland Chinese courts to request Hong Kong courts to freeze and confiscate assets related to crimes committed on the mainland, beyond an existing provision covering the proceeds of drug offences.
Opponents of the bill fear being sent for trial to a justice system rights group say is plagued by torture, forced confessions and arbitrary detentions.
WHY WAS THE CITY GOVERNMENT PUSHING IT?
Officials initially seized on the murder last year of a Hong Kong woman holidaying in Taiwan to justify the bill. Police say her boyfriend confessed on his return to Hong Kong and he is now in jail on lesser money-laundering charges.
Taiwan authorities have strongly opposed the bill, which they say could leave Taiwan citizens exposed in Hong Kong and have vowed to refuse to take back the murder suspect if the bill were to be passed.