People's Liberation Army troops stationed in Hong Kong should be tried in local courts if they break laws when outside barracks, legislators say.
Democratic Party legislator Cheung Man-kwong said yesterday he had seen reports that China wanted cases involving PLA soldiers to be dealt with by mainland court martials if they broke military, criminal or civil laws.
But Mr Cheung said it would be a 'serious blow' to an independent judiciary.
He told the Legislative Council security panel meeting the Government should urge China to discuss the matter in the Joint Liaison Group.
Deputy Secretary for Security Carrie Yau Tsang Ka-lai said London and Beijing agreed talks would take place at an expert level.
Ms Yau said she had not heard if China had decided to have all PLA cases dealt with on the mainland and admitted it was not what they had hoped would be the case.
