Radicals are breaking the law by calling for Hong Kong independence, says Beijing diplomat
But Legco president Jasper Tsang says the government has no plans to enact national security legislation
Hongkongers should realise that advocating for independence was illegal and calling for self-determination would lead the city nowhere, cautioned a Beijing diplomat in Hong Kong, the latest to lend his voice to the debate.
In a strongly worded speech yesterday on the open day of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs office in the city, deputy commissioner Hu Jianzhong also cited the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and Hong Kong Bill of Rights Ordinance, saying there were clauses that placed restrictions on freedom of speech on grounds of national security.
Beijing can deal on its own with advocacy of Hong Kong independence, says mainland Chinese law expert
His remarks were swiftly dismissed by Legislative Council president Jasper Tsang Yok-sing, a heavyweight of the pro-establishment camp, who argued that restrictions could only be imposed after consulting public opinion and going through all legislative procedures – and they must abide by international standards.
It was also not the right time to enact such restrictions, he said.
“The Hong Kong government has no plan to enact the national security law now,” Tsang stressed, referring to Article 23 of Basic Law, which if passed would set out laws against acts of “treason, secession, sedition or subversion”.
“The current discussion is quite vague and insubstantial … it is not the case that someone would be sanctioned simply because he is accused by anyone of breaking the law. There is rule of law in Hong Kong,” said Tsang.