Hong Kong’s national security law no concern for law-abiding groups, Carrie Lam says after Amnesty International reveals exit plans
- The rights group had specifically pointed to the Beijing-imposed legislation on Monday in announcing it would close two offices in the city
- But law has ‘very laudable objective to prevent and suppress’ activities that could undermine security, Lam says
The human rights group on Monday said it would leave Hong Kong by the end of the year, as the Beijing-imposed law made it “effectively impossible” to do its work without fear of “serious reprisals” from the government.
“No organisation should be worried about their legitimate operations in Hong Kong, but it has to be done in accordance with the law,” she said, adding that only individuals or groups that endangered national security had cause for concern.
Dozens of activists, including former opposition lawmakers, have been arrested and some of the city’s largest unions and activist organisations have disbanded since the June 2020 imposition of the security legislation, which outlaws acts of subversion, secession, terrorism and collusion with foreign forces.
But the law’s primary aim “is not just to arrest people and punish people, it also has a very laudable objective to prevent and suppress”, Lam continued.