Putonghua is an official language for conducting court proceedings, along with English and Cantonese, the Judiciary has confirmed after a barrister's request to cross-examine a witness in Putonghua caused confusion about whether it was legally permissible.
Barrister Stephen Tang Lung-wai last week made the request to question a witness in Putonghua on behalf of three mainland defendants charged with conspiracy to defraud. The issue led to debate on whether Putonghua could be considered an official language in Hong Kong.
It is understood there has not yet been a trial heard in Putonghua apart from exceptional cases such as appeal hearings involving unrepresented mainland defendants in right-of-abode cases.
According to the Official Languages Ordinance, English and Chinese are the official languages, but the law does not specify whether this means only Cantonese.
District Court judge Fergal Sweeney said on Thursday that if called upon, he would rule that Chinese in the Hong Kong context meant Cantonese. He quoted Mr Justice Michael Hartmann's words in a ruling last year that 'our courts allow for two official languages in the spoken form: English and Cantonese'.
But the Judiciary has since for the first time publicly endorsed Putonghua as an official language for court proceedings.
A spokeswoman, in consultation with the Chief Justice, said that since 'in the Hong Kong context, spoken Chinese usually refers to Cantonese and also includes Putonghua, court proceedings may be conducted in Putonghua'.