The national security law for Hong Kong, which targets very few people, will fully respect the independent jurisdiction and final adjudication of Hong Kong, and guarantees residents’ legal rights and freedom, Zhang Xiaoming, deputy director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council, said on Monday.
The law will not expand the scope of targets or trump up charges, Zhang said at a webinar commemorating the 30th anniversary of the promulgation of the Basic Law.
The decisions made by the National People’s Congress (NPC) is aimed only at four criminal activities – splitting the country, subverting state power, organizing and carrying out terrorist activities, and interfering in the affairs of Hong Kong by foreign forces – has nothing to do with the vast majority of Hong Kong residents, Zhang said.
The NPC passed on May 28 the decision of establishing and improving the legal system and enforcement mechanisms for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region to safeguard national security.
As for why the central government stepped in, Zhang said that Hong Kong has come to a situation in which the central government has to take action. The internal and external forces formed a long-term issue, and the damage they made has showed a tendency toward terrorism, while the external forces, such as US interference, has resulted in the most tense situation in Hong Kong since its return in 1997.
Zhang said that the central government was forced by Hong Kong opposition parties and radical separatists to take action.
Zhang said that he has heard some rumors claiming the national security organs could arrest people arbitrarily in Hong Kong and then send them for trial in the Chinese mainland. These rumors are not worth refuting, as national security organs handle cases strictly according to law and following strict protocols.
The law will not shrink the space of “one country, two systems.” Instead, Zhang said the firmer the bottom line of national security, the bigger the space of “one country, two systems.”
Hong Kong will restore stability and its business and investment environment will be improved after the law is implemented, Zhang said.
File photo of the Victoria Harbor in south China’s Hong Kong, on May 31, 2017. (Xinhua)
