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Following is a question by the Hon Frederick Fung and a written reply by the Secretary for Security, Mr Lai Tung-kwok, in the Legislative Council today (April 22):
Question:
It has been reported that as the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region has not yet enacted laws on its own to prohibit any act of treason, secession, etc. pursuant to Article 23 of the Basic Law, the Government plans to commence the enactment of an "anti-Hong Kong independence law" immediately after this Council's voting in June or July this year on the proposal of selecting the Chief Executive (CE) by universal suffrage in 2017. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the authorities' deployment for introducing legislation to implement Article 23; whether such deployment includes phased introduction of such legislation; if so, of the legislative priority of prohibiting acts of secession (including advancing Hong Kong independence), as well as the provision in the Basic Law on which the phased introduction of such legislation is based and the justifications thereof; whether the authorities' naming and criticising in this year's Policy Address some featured articles on Hong Kong independence published in Undergrad, a magazine of the Hong Kong University Students' Union, is part of such deployment;
(2) whether it has assessed if the authorities' phased introduction of legislation to implement Article 23 contradicts the statements made repeatedly by CE and the relevant officials in the past that there was no plan to introduce legislation to implement Article 23; if it has assessed, of the outcome; and
(3) whether it has assessed if there is currently only a small number of people in Hong Kong supporting the proposition of Hong Kong independence; if the assessment outcome is in the affirmative, whether it has examined if the frequent criticisms on the proposition of Hong Kong independence by CE and people from the pro-Government camp will give the public the impression that their aim is to exaggerate the problem so as to create public opinions in support of the authorities' introduction of legislation to implement Article 23?
Reply:
President,
The reply of the question is as follows -
The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) is constitutionally obliged under Article 23 of the Basic Law (BL23) to enact laws for national security. The HKSAR Government administers in accordance with the Basic Law. However, we do not have any plan to enact laws in respect of BL23 for the time being.
Any action to advocate Hong Kong's independence is neither in line with Hong Kong's position as an SAR nor with the relevant provisions in the Basic Law.
Ends/Wednesday, April 22, 2015
Issued at HKT 14:34
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