National security law: Hong Kong civil service chief warns public officers again over joining unofficial referendum
- Secretary for the Civil Service Patrick Nip warns the government workforce a day before more than 30 labour unions are set to vote on the proposed law
- Michael Ngan of the Union for New Civil Servants says they will hold the referendum as scheduled on Saturday
Secretary for the Civil Service Patrick Nip Tak-kuen said this in a letter to the city’s government workforce a day before more than 30 labour unions are set to hold the referendum on whether to take part in a general strike to oppose the proposed legislation.
Currently being deliberated by China’s top legislative body, the National People’s Congress Standing Committee, the law seeks to criminalise acts of secession, subversion of state power, terrorist activities, and collusion with foreign and external forces in Hong Kong affairs.
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Nip singled out a civil servants’ union, which is co-organising the polls, for “blatantly mobilising” government workers to take part in the referendum. He said the union must not act against the proposed law in view of their responsibilities of implementing such legislation under the leadership of the city’s chief executive.
“[Such moves] would make others wrongly believe that they represent most civil servants, and that civil servants are against the government,” Nip said.
“This is extremely unfair to most of the remaining civil servants who have been carrying out their duties with dedication and perseverance.”
“Civil servants have a responsibility to support and implement the national security law,” he said.
That warning had come a day after the government issued a statement, accusing the Union for New Civil Servants of tarnishing the reputation of the civil service by planning the referendum.
It said any form of referendum had no constitutional basis and no organisation would “succeed in intimidating the government by extreme means”.
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In response to Nip’s warning on Friday, the union’s leader Michael Ngan Mo-chau said they would not back down from holding the referendum as scheduled.
“We hope the government will respect and safeguard our colleagues’ rights to express their views and join activities organised by the union,” he said.
On Saturday, unions spanning more than 20 industries in Hong Kong – including aviation, transport, construction and information technology – as well as the Secondary School Students Action Platform backed by political party Demosisto, will ask members about their views on the legislation.
Organisers said if more than 60,000 workers and 10,000 students voted, with 60 per cent supporting a strike or class boycott to oppose the legislation, they would go ahead with the action.
