Elsie Leung defends her right to 'free speech'
Former justice secretary Elsie Leung Oi-sie defended her criticism of Hong Kong’s judiciary as “free speech”, as an argument with two legal bodies continued on Friday.
Former secretary for justice Elsie Leung Oi-sie defended as “free speech” her earlier criticism of Hong Kong’s judiciary, as her back-and-forth argument with two legal bodies continued on Friday.
“I have the right to free speech, too, and my opinion does not affect judicial independence whatsoever,” she said in Nansha, Guangdong.
The public argument began last Saturday, when Leung criticised the city’s legal profession, including judges, for lacking an understanding of the Beijing-Hong Kong relationship.
Leung had urged the government to seek an interpretation of the Basic Law from Beijing.
Four days later, the Bar Association and the Law Society issued strong defences of the city’s independent judiciary, with the Law Society warning the government to “act cautiously” before seeking any interpretation of the Basic Law from Beijing.
On Friday, Leung, the deputy director of the Basic Law Committee, said she was not the first person to comment openly on court cases.
“There were times when academics made criticisms on matters relating to the Hua Tian Long case, when it was about to be heard at the appeal court. Why did the Bar Association and the Law Society not issue any statement at that time?”