Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam says her government plans to officially withdraw a bill that critics say would harm the territory’s special legal status. Lam announced the decision in a videotaped message that her office released on Wednesday. Opposition to the extradition bill has fueled three months of often violent protests in Hong Kong. If it were to become law, the measure would have permitted criminal suspects to be sent to mainland China for trial in courts controlled by the Communist Party. After large demonstrations in the Chinese-controlled territory earlier this year, Lam suspended the measure in June, but did not withdraw it. The Hong Kong chief now has formally withdrawn the proposed law.
