Laws which make it a crime to desecrate the national or regional flags were declared valid by the Court of Final Appeal yesterday.
Chief Justice Andrew Li Kwok-nang said the legislation, which carries a maximum sentence of three years' imprisonment, imposed a permissible restriction on the freedom of expression.
He stressed the symbolic role played by the flags in ensuring implementation of the 'one country, two systems' concept and maintaining national unity since the handover.
'Protection of the national flag and the regional flag from desecration, having regard to their unique symbolism, will play an important part in the attainment of these goals,' he said.
'In these circumstances, there are strong grounds for concluding that the criminalisation of flag desecration is a justifiable restriction on the guaranteed right to the freedom of expression.' The Chief Justice, in a unanimous ruling, said the 'intrinsic importance' of the flags was demonstrated by the fact that they were raised at the handover ceremony.
The five judges overturned a ruling by the Court of Appeal in March that the laws, introduced after the handover, were unconstitutional.
Convictions against Ng Kung-siu and Lee Kin-yun, who waved 'extensively defaced' flags in a peaceful pro-democracy demonstration in January last year, were restored by the court. Their sentences, orders that they be bound over to keep the peace, were also reinstated. Both men are in their 20s.