Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee (李家超) yesterday said that the territory would create its own national security law next year, four years after Beijing imposed sweeping legislation aimed at silencing dissent.
The Beijing-anointed leader unveiled measures in a policy address aimed at revitalizing Hong Kong’s economy and flagging population growth, while asserting the need to protect the territory from “external forces.”
“Some countries are undermining China and the implementation of ‘one country, two systems’ in Hong Kong for their own benefits,” Lee said, referring to the governance model agreed by Britain and China under which the territory would keep some autonomy and freedoms following the 1997 handover.
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“External forces continue to meddle in Hong Kong affairs,” he said.
“We must guard against those seeking to provoke conflict ... and remain alert to acts of ‘soft resistance’ in different forms,” said Lee, using a phrase that Chinese and Hong Kong officials have used in speeches to denote anti-government actions.
Protests rocked the territory in 2019, bringing hundreds of thousands of people to the streets to call for greater freedoms and more autonomy from mainland China.
In response, Beijing imposed a National Security Law to punish four major crimes — secession, subversion, terrorism and collusion with foreign forces — with sentences of up to life in prison.
Lee — who is under US sanctions for his role in stamping out the protests — said that Hong Kong would “continue to safeguard national security.”
“The government is pressing ahead to draw up effective legislative options and will complete the legislative exercise in 2024 to fulfill our constitutional duty,” Lee said.
Under the Basic Law — the territory’s mini-constitution — Hong Kong is required to implement its own law combating seven security-related crimes, including treason and espionage.
The task, often referred to as “a constitutional responsibility” by the Hong Kong government, has yet to be fulfilled more than 25 years after its return to Chinese rule.
The last legislative attempt in 2003 was shelved after about 500,000 people took to the streets in protest.
Data from the Hong Kong Security Bureau showed that as of the end of last month, 280 people had been arrested and 30 had been convicted under the National Security Law.
The legislation has effectively snuffed out political dissent.
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