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Following is the transcript of remarks by the Chief Executive, Mr C Y Leung, at a media session after attending the Serene Guangxi - Hong Kong Tour 2013 cocktail reception today (June 24):
Chief Executive: Mr Edward Joseph Snowden left Hong Kong as a normal passenger using our usual and lawful channels for a third country yesterday while the Hong Kong Government was processing the request of the United States Government to issue a provisional warrant of arrest on Mr Snowden. As a result of Mr Snowden's departure from Hong Kong to a third country, there have been expressions of displeasure on the part of some quarters of the United States. I want to restate Hong Kong's position on this.
The people of Hong Kong, as well as our friends in the international community, expect Hong Kong to uphold its own laws, including the Basic Law, which was promulgated to uphold the principle of "One Country, Two Systems", "Hong Kong people ruling Hong Kong" and a high degree of autonomy. The people of Hong Kong and our friends in the international community expect us to follow the laws of Hong Kong itself. They expect us to uphold our rule of law and, equally importantly, they expect us to follow procedural fairness and procedural justice. We were asking the United States Government for further important information on the case, and there was no legal basis to stop Mr Snowden from leaving Hong Kong. This is a good example to illustrate "One Country, Two Systems", "Hong Kong people ruling Hong Kong" and the high degree of autonomy that we have. It is also a good example to illustrate the rule of law that we uphold and the procedural fairness and justice that we uphold.
(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript.)
Ends/Monday, June 24, 2013
Issued at HKT 19:13
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