Explain Hong Kong’s Article 23 to show government has ‘nothing to hide’: scholars urge clarity on security law to avoid ‘conspiracy theories’

Consultation period for home-grown national security legislation will begin in early February, according to sources

Hong Kong Bar Association chairman Victor Dawes urged authorities to carry out a ‘transparent and thorough’ consultation exercise

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Hong Kong is required under the city’s mini-constitution to enact its own national security law. Photo: May Tse

Published: 8:30am, 24 Jan 2024Updated: 12:38pm, 30 Jan 2024

Legal and political scholars have urged Hong Kong authorities to clearly explain the rationale behind each provision of a coming home-grown national security law and allow all residents to provide feedback during a consultation period, which sources have revealed will begin in early February before Lunar New Year.

A government source said the Security Bureau was hoping to start the consultation as soon as possible as it expected attempts in the international and local community to “smear” the legislation.

“The consultation will not be in the format of a white bill,” the source said, referring to an arrangement in which the full draft of legislation is made available to the public to canvass their views.

“We will do our best to promote the legislation to the public and hope it will be widely accepted. Relevant publicity work and consultation will begin earlier, before the Lunar New Year holiday.”

Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu earlier said the local legislation for Article 23 of the Basic Law, the city’s mini-constitution, would be completed within this year to expand the scope of national security offences to theft of state secrets, espionage and other acts, which were not part of the Beijing-decreed national security law imposed in 2020.