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Joint checkpoint for rail link ‘in line with Basic Law’, Beijing’s point man on Hong Kong tells China’s top legislative body
But questions persist in Hong Kong on the legality of the arrangement, which would give Beijing authority over an area of the West Kowloon terminus
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Beijing’s point man on Hong Kong affairs told China’s top legislative body on Friday that the joint checkpoint for the cross-border rail link was “in line” with the country’s constitution and the city’s mini-constitution, amid an ongoing debate in Hong Kong on the legality of the arrangement.
Zhang Xiaoming, director of the State Council’s Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, briefed the National People’s Congress (NPC) Standing Committee on the Hong Kong government’s plan to allow a designated area of the West Kowloon terminus for the HK$84.4 billion Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong express rail link, including compartments of the train, to come under mainland customs and immigration authorities.
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Pan-democrat lawmakers in the city argue that the plan would involve ceding part of Hong Kong’s territory to mainland jurisdiction even though the Basic Law states that national or mainland laws would not be applied in the city.
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But chief executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor and members of her administration have insisted that there is a legal basis for the so-called co-location arrangement, which would also speed up passenger journeys by making border clearance more efficient.
On Friday, state broadcaster CCTV quoted Zhang as saying: “[The arrangement] will not change the administrative boundary of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, and will not weaken the rights and freedom that Hong Kong people enjoy under the law.
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“It is in line with the Basic Law.”
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