A POWERFUL Preliminary Working Committee (PWC) member yesterday accused the Government of exceeding its functions in passing the Bill of Rights before 1997.
Vice-chairman Simon Li Fook-sean, the PWC's legal sub-group local convenor, was defending the sub-group's proposal to neuter the bill.
Mr Li, a retired Court of Appeal judge, was absent from the meeting at which the proposal was made.
He said the proposed abolition of key provisions in the bill was reasonable, because it had contravened the Basic Law.
'Britain has, in some ways, exceeded its functions by meddling with the affairs of the Special Administrative Region [SAR] before it is set up,' he said.
The Basic Law says the legislature of the SAR should draw up laws to implement the two international covenants on human rights, Mr Li said.
