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Following is the transcript of the reply by the Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs, Mr Raymond Tam, to a question from the media after attending a public function this afternoon (February 28):
Reporter: With the passage of the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act in the US, there could be economic sanctions if the US considers the political system in Hong Kong is undemocratic. So, what's your view on this Act? And, would the Government be willing to sacrifice trade and also ties with the US to maintain the current political framework?
Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs: I would like to make a few points. I have taken careful note of the development on this front in the US. At this stage, as of today, it's no more than just a proposal in the Congress as yet because it has yet been passed by both Houses.
Our principal stand is as such. First, we maintain and emphasise the view that constitutional development is an internal matter for Hong Kong and it is an internal matter for our country as well. We hope that foreign governments and foreign parliaments would respect our principal position on this.
The second point I would like to make is that by using trade sanctions and things like that in the past would prove to be damaging to the people, damaging to the community that they intend to protect because by restricting trading rights would undoubtedly affect the daily livelihood of the people in Hong Kong. I personally had been involved in trading negotiations for years in the past so I don't think it is a smart move at all. In any case, I would like to reiterate and underline the first point that I made. It is purely an internal matter for Hong Kong and our country. We have the necessary skills and wisdom to settle the matter internally and we hope that foreign governments and parliaments will respect our position.
(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript.)
Ends/Saturday, February 28, 2015
Issued at HKT 18:40
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