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Letters | Hong Kong’s common law system can endure past 2047, but will it?
- The common law system can endure in Hong Kong even if its economy more closely resembles Chinese socialism – the problem is uncertainty
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Why you can trust SCMP
Mike Rowse (“Beijing should clarify what happens to Hong Kong after 2047 to ease the fear”, November 4) raises an interesting point, but has misunderstood what I’ve said.
I have never said that the “one country, two systems” policy ceases to apply after 2047. Of course not. My focus has always been on the common law, and whether it can be the governing system after 2047.
The interesting point is this: Article 8 of the Basic Law says that the common law shall be the governing system in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. There is no expiry date in Article 8.
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It is Article 5 which is the problem. It says that the mainland’s socialist system shall not apply in the Hong Kong SAR, and that the pre-1997 capitalist system and lifestyle shall remain unchanged for 50 years.
The common law system is flexible, and can function under socialist policies. Consider Britain, when sweeping socialist changes were introduced by the newly elected Labour government in 1945.
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