Hong Kong’s Article 23 law: customs to alert police if visitors caught with seditious materials

Customs chief Ho Pui-shan says department will also provide training so officers can better detect materials that endanger national security

‘I need to remind residents and tourists … when you go to a destination abroad, you need to know the customs clearance requirements of the place,’ she adds

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Hong Kong’s customs chief has urged travellers not to transport anything that might breach the law. Photo: Yik Yeung-man

Published: 4:23pm, 6 Apr 2024Updated: 6:08pm, 6 Apr 2024

Hong Kong customs will alert police if visitors are caught with seditious materials and fail to give a reasonable excuse under the city’s domestic national security legislation, but did not offer a clear definition of what items fell foul of the new law.

Commissioner of Customs and Excise Louise Ho Pui-shan said on Saturday that her department would amend its internal guidelines and provide training on materials that endangered national security.

The shake-up follows the enactment of the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance last month, a move which fulfilled Hong Kong’s obligation under Article 23 of the Basic Law, the city’s mini-constitution.

The legislation introduces 39 offences divided into five categories: treason; insurrection, incitement to mutiny and disaffection, and acts with seditious intention; sabotage; external interference endangering national security; and theft of state secrets and espionage.

Ho was asked on Friday how authorities would respond to tourists carrying old newspapers, such as copies of the now-defunct tabloid Apple Daily, or returning residents with books covering military matters in Hong Kong.

The customs chief only said there were no import and export restrictions on regular books, but urged visitors not to transport anything that could be in breach of the law.