Carrie Lam must seek real progress on fugitive-rendition agreement with mainland China
Grenville Cross says the lack of a treaty on judicial cooperation 20 years after the handover must make Beijing question Hong Kong’s resolve to combat crime, which does not bode well for post-2047 arrangements
As the Basic Law recognises, mutual legal assistance in criminal matters between different jurisdictions is integral to successful anti-crime strategies.
However, while Article 95 provides that Hong Kong may “maintain juridical relations with the judicial organs of other parts of the country, and they may render assistance to each other”, nothing substantive has been achieved since 1997, despite early hopes.
The Security Bureau intended to complete negotiations with Beijing on the rendition of fugitives by 2000, but, 17 years on, no agreement has been signed; Hong Kong still has to rely on mainland goodwill to secure the return of its fugitives. Since 1997, the mainland has transferred 170 criminal suspects to Hong Kong. However, Hong Kong cannot reciprocate.