Joint checkpoint at Hong Kong railway terminal touches a nerve despite success of Shenzhen model

Residents fear mainland Chinese officials will be free to check their mobile phones and electronic devices

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Outbound kiosks for cargo/goods vehicles at Shenzhen Bay Port. Photo: Oliver Tsang

Published: 9:30pm, 24 Jul 2017Updated: 4:25pm, 26 Jul 2017

For the past decade, Hong Kong travellers crossing the border at Shenzhen Bay Port in the west of the special economic zone have been able to complete the customs clearance of both sides under one roof thanks to an unprecedented joint checkpoint.

While this arrangement allows Hong Kong’s immigration officers to enforce Hong Kong laws on mainland Chinese soil, a similar joint checkpoint planned for the terminus of the Hong Kong-Guangzhou high-speed rail link in West Kowloon has stoked controversy.

Watch: all you need to know about the high-speed rail link

The idea of mainland immigration officers enforcing their laws in a leased area of the busy commercial district has led to fears it could undermine the Basic Law, the city’s mini-constitution, which states that national laws should not apply in Hong Kong.

This became a hot topic in the wake of the disappearance of five local booksellers in late 2015, who eventually turned up in the custody of mainland authorities.

Despite such controversies, the Hong Kong government is working hard to persuade the public and lawmakers that the co-location arrangement would work just as well as in Shenzhen Bay. Details are expected to be announced on Tuesday.

Joint checkpoint at Hong Kong railway terminal touches a nerve despite success of Shenzhen model

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Residents fear mainland Chinese officials will be free to check their mobile phones and electronic devices

Residents fear mainland Chinese officials will be free to check their mobile phones and electronic devices