Write to your local council/ councillor 

You can ask your local government to end its twinning arrangement with China by writing to your local council or the councillor who represents your area. Please feel free to use and amend the following template.
你可以直接電郵/寫信給你所屬的區議會/區議員並提出斷絕與中共姊妹城市要求，歡迎使用以下範本再作適當更改。

Dear [_______], 

We, the residents of [_______], want to bring to your attention the need to terminate the sister city relationships our [city/state] currently has with China. It is necessary to reconsider the legitimacy of maintaining ties with the Chinese Communist government, which has been violating human rights and contempt for international relations since its reign. 

This global joint campaign is co-launched by 163 cities across 7 countries in Asia, America, Europe and Oceania. [……If your city has a public signed petition…… As of today, our petition has received over (_____) signatures, demonstrating the partnership between China and (_______) indeed imposes great concerns and conflicts in values among people who are living here.] 

The Chinese Communist regime's actions repeatedly demonstrate that it is not concerned with upholding the universal values we safeguard and adhering to international rules of conduct. From the 1989 Tiananmen Square Massacre, the ongoing Uyghur genocide that began in 2014, the demise of Hong Kong's autonomy in 2019, the persistent threat of military action against Taiwan, the refusal to cooperate in pandemic investigations, to most recently, supporting Russia in its invasion of Ukraine, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) displays its totalitarianism nature in ways that are reminiscent of infamous fascist rulers in the last century. 

The establishment of the sister city agreement was intended to be a diplomatic strategy to promote economic activities and cultural exchange, and it should be grounded on genuine exchanges for mutual benefits. However, the CCP never ceases to manipulate this form of diplomacy like how it exploits international orders. Many pieces of evidence suggest that the CCP has been reaping economic benefits even as it attempts to influence the world order and impose its ideology to expand its hegemony. 

Various governments begin to realise that some of the sister city agreements that involve partnerships with the Confucius Institutes are a cultural façade constructed to spread propaganda. This has triggered a wave of closures of the Confucius Institutes across Europe, America, and recently an education bill debating in the UK’s parliament. Chinese educators, scientists, and students have had their access to visas restricted because of the uncovering of agents from the "Thousand Talents Program," which was created for espionage activities. 

As we wean ourselves from the reliance on the Chinese market for manufacturing and exporting, the ending of sister city relationships is the next natural step for leaders of democratic countries to take in the process of decoupling with China. For instance, due to the increasing tensions in the diplomatic relationship between China and Sweden, nearly half of the Swedish cities have already terminated their sister city agreement with China over the past 5 years. More cities of our allies are following to end this unequal collaboration with their bad faith counterparts. 

With all the shreds of evidence of China’s spreading totalitarianism, including its current stance of pro-Russian pseudo-neutrality, we, the residents of [_______], shudder to continue with the “sister city” relationship between [_your city /state_] and [_associated Chinese sister cities_]. This is a matter of safeguarding human rights and aligning with the values of [_______]. Also, it is critical in our national security efforts to protect our intellectual properties, economic interests, and the safety of our people. We hence urge the [_your local authority_] to bring this important issue to the discussion table and end the continuation of a totalitarian regime's infiltration of our society using sister city agreements. [……If your city has a public signed petition…… The list of signatures from the online petition is attached with this letter.]