4. Urges the Hong Kong authorities to immediately and unconditionally release and drop all charges against all journalists, as well as all peaceful protesters, activists and political representatives, who have simply exercised their right to freedom of expression and other human rights and who have been arrested on charges pursuant to the NSL; calls for a stop to politically motivated prosecutions and other legal procedures against peaceful protesters with a view to silencing critical voices and deterring people from participating in the public sphere; 5. Reiterates its grave concern about the entry into force of the NSL on 30 June 2020, which is in breach of the PRC’s commitments and obligations under international law, namely the Sino-British Joint Declaration, and is a comprehensive assault on the city’s high degree of autonomy, rule of law and fundamental freedoms; recognises that the law has been used numerous times as grounds for disqualifying and imprisoning electoral candidates and politicians, arresting students over social media posts and banning common protest slogans; stresses that the NSL prevents a relationship of trust between China and the EU, undermines future cooperation and leads to a further erosion of Beijing’s credibility on the international stage; 6. Condemns any attempts at muzzling pro-democracy activists, including the blocking of pro-democracy websites, on grounds of the NSL; reiterates that the freedom of expression and of information is a fundamental right enshrined in Hong Kong’s domestic and international law; 7. Expresses grave concern over the reported practices of secret detention, torture and illtreatment, and forced confessions by the Hong Kong Police Force and in Hong Kong jails, including concerns over individuals currently awaiting trial who are being held in solitary confinement for long periods of time; 8. Condemns the emerging restrictions on the independence of the judiciary and the increasing politicisation of courts; stresses the urgent need to prevent, as the next step, the dismantling of Hong Kong’s independent judiciary and calls on the EEAS to prepare a detailed public report on the rule of law and the independence of the judiciary in addition to the Hong Kong annual report; 9. Expresses concern at the recently adopted changes to Hong Kong’s electoral law, which introduce a ‘patriot-only’ principle and set up a vetting committee to screen all election candidates, which will weed out any last remaining dissenting voices and totally runs counter to the commitments to greater democratic representation enshrined in the Hong Kong Basic Law; 10. Urges the Chinese authorities to repeal the NSL, which damages Hong Kong’s international status, and urges the Hong Kong authorities to fully restore respect for the rule of law, human rights, democratic principles and the high degree of autonomy under the ‘one country, two systems’ principle, as enshrined in the Hong Kong Basic Law and in line with its domestic and international obligations; 11. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to address the NSL as a top priority on the agenda of all EU-China meetings, including in diplomatic consultations in preparation for those meetings; recalls the importance of the EU continuing to raise the issue of human rights violations in China, in particular the case of minorities in Xinjiang and Tibet, at every political and human rights dialogue with Chinese authorities and in line