Hong Kong government to announce new law banning masks during public assemblies in bid to end months of protest violence
- Source confirms city leader Carrie Lam’s de facto cabinet will convene a special meeting on Friday
- If the Executive Council approves the plan to enact the anti-mask law, the government will make an announcement after the meeting
Hong Kong’s embattled government is set to announce plans on Friday to ban people from wearing masks at public assemblies, as it struggles to get a grip on protest violence spiralling out of control, sources have told the Post.
Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor’s administration, under mounting pressure from its political allies to put a stop to nearly four months of anti-government protest violence, is expected to impose the ban through legislation by invoking a tough, colonial-era emergency law that has not been used in more than half a century.
Lam would hold a special meeting of her de facto cabinet, the Executive Council, on Friday morning before announcing the ban, according to sources on Thursday.
Prior approval by city’s legislature is not required, and it will only be able to amend or strike down the law after implementation.
Legal experts were quick to warn that invoking the emergency law would destroy due process and pave the way for more draconian regulations.