Hong Kong security secretary hits out at US-backed Asia radio station over reports that city's national security law would target media
Hong Kong's security chief has slammed Washington-funded news station Radio Free Asia over "false" reports that suggested the proposed home-grown national security law was designed to target the media.
Chris Tang Ping-keung, the security secretary, was speaking on Monday after he attended a seminar on the law, mandated by Article 23 of the Basic Law, Hong Kong's mini constitution.
"We note that reports on Radio Free Asia, which is funded by the US government, mention that some of the offences under Article 23 target the media," Tang said.
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"It is wrong, and false. We only target those who could pose threats to national security.
"There are sufficient safeguards to protect all people, especially media reporting."
He said freedom in Hong Kong was guaranteed, including by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.
"Whether it is under the national security legislation, Basic Law, or the two international covenants, there are sufficient freedoms [guaranteed to the people]," Tang emphasised.
Radio Free Asia could not be contacted for comment.
The seminar was organised by the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB).
Tang rejected an earlier statement by Tom Tugendhat, the minister of state with responsibility for security at the British Home Office, that Article 23 would destroy the rule of law in Hong Kong and its prosperity.
He also dismissed comments by the city's last governor Chris Patten, who questioned the need for the new law after the Beijing-imposed national security legislation of 2020.
Tang highlighted that national security laws existed in the UK and that Hong Kong had considered them when it drafted the city's legislation.
The government last month launched a 30-day public consultation on the controversial legislation, which will end next Wednesday.
Officials have said the legislation was needed to bolster Hong Kong's legal system and enforcement mechanisms to safeguard national security in the city.
Horace Cheung Kwok-kwan, the deputy justice secretary, who also attended the seminar, said the government would study the views of the public and would incorporate constructive criticism in its bill.
Gary Chan Hak-kan, the chairman of the DAB, said after the seminar that the party had set up a working group to follow up on Article 23 issues.
Chan said the party supported the Article 23 legislation.
The party has also met foreign chambers of commerce in Hong Kong over the past month to explain the need for the legislation.
Chan said there were also plans to meet more foreign chambers of commerce, including the British and American business organisations.
Holden Chow Ho-ding, the DAB vice-chairman, insisted that most chambers of commerce appreciated that the proposed legislation would not affect normal business operations.
Hong Kong attempted to pass Article 23 legislation in 2003, but it was dropped after about half a million people took to the streets in protest amid fears the law could be used to curtail civil rights.
This article originally appeared on the South China Morning Post (SCMP).
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