Opinion | Opponents to Hong Kong’s extradition bill are blind to progress in China’s legal system

The legal amendments will enable an arrangement for fugitive transfer with the mainland not unlike those it already has in place with other countries

Critics fail to see the improvements over the years to China’s judicial processes

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Opponents to the proposed extradition bill rally outside the Legislative Council building, where the amendments were to be discussed, on May 4. Photo: Edmond So

Published: 9:00am, 9 May 2019Updated: 9:00am, 9 May 2019

The Security Bureau’s proposed amendments to the Fugitive Offenders Ordinance, which will enable fugitives in Hong Kong to be returned on a case-by-case basis to other jurisdictions for trial, are a sensible means of resolving a long-standing problem. Because of the current vacuum, Hong Kong has become a magnet for fugitives from throughout China and beyond. Not only have convicted criminals from Macau found refuge here, but so have people accused of grave crimes in Taiwan, as well as 300 fugitives from mainland China.

Moreover, as Hong Kong has extradition agreements with only 20 countries, fugitives from over 170 countries can also evade justice by coming here. Although the exact numbers are unknown, the Security Bureau’s proposals will put foreign offenders on notice that they come here at their peril.

The current situation is obviously detrimental to effective law enforcement throughout China, and sends out the message that Hong Kong cannot be trusted to help its neighbours combat crime. If it forfeits the confidence of others, this could adversely affect its own ability to uphold criminal justice.

Whereas, for example, mainland China has returned an estimated 200 criminal suspects since 1997, this cooperation, in the absence of reciprocity, could well dry up, and Hong Kong would only have itself to blame.

Hysteria apart, much of the criticism of the proposals has been fuelled by double standards and woeful ignorance of how other systems work.

The former governor, Chris Patten, for example, has condemned the proposals, saying that “societies which believe in the rule of law do not reach agreements like this with those who do not”. However, those who live in glass houses should not throw stones. The UK has, without demur from Patten, signed extradition agreements with places like Cuba, Haiti, Iraq, Libya, and Zimbabwe, hardly renowned bastions of the rule of law.

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