Hong Kong's pro-democracy lawmakers to resign en masse from Legislature

Pro-democracy lawmakers in Hong Kong’s Legislature said Wednesday they will resign en masse after four of their colleagues were forced out by Beijing.

The resignations of the 15 lawmakers is the latest upheaval inside the semi-autonomous Chinese territory that started last year with a proposed law from China that would send some Hong Kong residents to trial in Beijing. The proposed extraditions sparked widespread and often violent protests in the region. This summer, Beijing impose a National Security Law that further limited Hong Kong residents' freedoms. 

The resignations will effectively result in the Legislature being able to pass pro-Beijing laws without opposition.

The ousters came after China’s National People’s Congress Standing Committee passed a resolution stating any lawmaker who supports Hong Kong’s independence, refuses to acknowledge China’s sovereignty over the city, threatens national security, or asks external forces to interfere in the city’s affairs should be disqualified, according to the Associated Press.