Exclusive | Foreign meddling, spying can be in many guises, like human rights, arts causes, says Hong Kong’s security minister on need for Article 23 law
- Soft resistance in many forms can also be linked to foreign agents, Secretary for Security Chris Tang says, ahead of new law to be drafted and completed by 2024
- Remit of law yet to be decided, but foreign interference, spying, theft of state secrets among areas to be covered
Hong Kong’s impending local version of a security law due will target foreign interference and espionage, which can appear in many guises such as through alleged human rights and arts causes to divide society and incite hatred against the government, the city’s security minister has said.
With a separate security law already imposed by Beijing and now into its third year, Tang said the local version would cover the theft of state secrets and also “plug the loopholes on espionage and foreign interference”, among other yet-to-be identified crimes.
Such a law was needed to also tackle elements of “soft resistance” inside and outside Hong Kong, he said, that were still active and widespread, even though the city had returned to stability after the 2019 protests. Such actions continued to make the city vulnerable to foreign meddling and spying, and they were “interrelated”, he said.
“What do I mean by ‘soft resistance?’ They are trying to resist the overall sovereignty of our country towards Hong Kong,” he said.
“There are people trying to use different means under this guise of human rights, the arts. They are trying to use these to cover their attempt to divide the society and to incite hatred against our central government and our government.”