Opening statement by PSHYA at UN Committee on Elimination of Discrimination against Women meeting (with photo)
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Madam Chairperson, members of the Committee, ladies and gentlemen,
I am honoured to have this opportunity to speak on the implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) of the People's Republic of China.
The HKSAR has all along been implementing CEDAW in accordance with the provisions of the Basic Law and the local laws, including the four pieces of anti-discrimination legislation.
An overview
Women make up 54 per cent of Hong Kong's population and the HKSAR Government has all along been committed to promoting women's development and providing support to women.
Girls and women in education
All the legislative efforts, together with a free, universal and compulsory 12-year education that we offer to all children, equip girls with wings to fly high, and women with tools to excel in family, career and social life.
Today, nearly 80 per cent of females aged 15 or above in Hong Kong have attained secondary education or above, and females now account for more than half of our student enrolments in undergraduate programmes and over 60 per cent of the students in taught postgraduate programmes.
Women in workplace
Women in Hong Kong nowadays are not only free to choose to work in the labour market, but are also taking high positions.
Using the Civil Service as an example, women are now filling more senior positions. Twelve of our 18 Permanent Secretaries, the highest civil servant positions in the Government, and around 40 per cent of all directorate officers are women. In the Judiciary, more than one-third of our judges and judicial officers are women. These figures, comparing to 2014 when we last reported to the Committee, have all increased significantly. Looking at the private businesses, we see women in Hong Kong breaking the glass ceiling and attaining success - More than 30 per cent of management positions, 50 per cent of public accountants, and 51 per cent of solicitors are now women.
Key development since 2014
There are more positive changes for Hong Kong women since 2014. We have since amended our Sex Discrimination Ordinance to provide protection against harassment of breastfeeding women. We have since raised our gender benchmark for appointment to government advisory and statutory body to 35 per cent from the previous 25 per cent. We have also extended the maternity leave from 10 weeks to 14 weeks.
The Chief Executive of the HKSAR announced in his 2022 Policy Address that we will set up a Women Empowerment Fund to support women in balancing job and family commitments. The Government has further decided to set aside HK$100 million (approximately US$13 million) in the 2023-24 Budget to promote women's development further.
The 2019 riot
Chairperson and members, apart from celebrating Hong Kong women's achievements in the past decade, I would also like to take the chance to address certain comments against the HKSAR in some NGO (non-governmental organisation) submissions to the Committee. Many of the statements in these submissions are based on false information and distorted narratives regardless of the truth, with flawed comments on the situation in Hong Kong.
The Hong Kong community was traumatised during the serious violence in 2019 arising from the opposition to a proposed legislative amendment exercise. The scale and level of violent illegal acts were unprecedented. The opposition forces and organisations advocating "Hong Kong Independence" and "self-determination" blatantly challenged the authority of the Central Authorities and the HKSAR Government, pleaded for interference in Hong Kong's affairs by external forces and even begged for sanctions against Hong Kong.
It is in light of this chaotic context that our Police have taken professional and necessary actions to protect citizens' lives and safety, and that there is a necessity to enact the Hong Kong National Security Law (NSL). I must also rebut two false claims that certain NGOs have presented to the Committee in this respect.
Rebuttal of "gender-based violence" by Police
First, on the so-called "gender-based violence" alleged to be committed by our Police during the serious violence in 2019, we strongly oppose such ungrounded narratives. An example of such baseless claims was that a screenshot of a French movie was edited and turned into a poster to fabricate sexual assault allegations against the Police. I must stress that Hong Kong is a society that upholds the rule of law. When someone breaks the law, police officers are duty-bound to arrest them and bring them to justice. No one, including the Police, is above the law.
The two-tier police complaint handling mechanism is operating effectively to ensure that every complaint against the Police is handled in a fair and impartial manner. The Complaints Against Police Office and the Independent Police Complaints Council handle cases with a serious and professional attitude to protect victims who are genuinely abused.
Rebuttal of NSL interfering with women's political rights
Second, I wish to respond to the malicious claim that the NSL has interfered with women's political rights. Following the implementation of the NSL, chaos stopped and stability has been restored in Hong Kong, allowing the enjoyment of rights and freedoms which many people in the HKSAR had been unable to enjoy during the period of serious violence between June 2019 and early 2020. The NSL clearly stipulates that human rights shall be respected and protected in safeguarding national security in the HKSAR. All law enforcement actions taken by Hong Kong law enforcement agencies under the NSL, or indeed any local legislation, are based on evidence, strictly in accordance with the law and for the acts of the people and entities concerned, and have nothing to do with their political stance, background, occupation, or gender.
Indeed, many Hong Kong people could tell you from their own experience that the implementation of the NSL has effectively ended the chaotic situation in Hong Kong in the 10 months or so since June 2019. Thanks to the implementation of the NSL, livelihood has returned to normal while economy revived. The HKSAR Government will continue to resolutely carry out its duties and obligations to safeguard national security and, at the same time, protect the rights and freedoms that Hong Kong residents enjoy, ensuring the steadfast and successful implementation of the "one country, two systems" principle.
Conclusion
The HKSAR Government would continue to dedicate resources to promote the realisation of women's due status, rights and opportunities in all aspects of life. We will also continue to firmly dispel any unfounded and false allegations against the situation in Hong Kong. Last but not least, I would like to thank Madam Huang Xiaowei for her leadership in the Chinese delegation and must also thank you for your interest in and observations on our Government's Fourth Report submitted in 2018. We look forward to sharing with you more about our efforts in our dialogues later today.
Ends/Friday, May 12, 2023
Issued at HKT 17:00
Issued at HKT 17:00
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