A top justice official said Taiwanese in Hong Kong could be prosecuted under a proposed anti-subversion law if they advocate the use of force to repel against a Chinese attack on the island, newspapers reported yesterday.
But the solicitor-general of the Justice Department, Robert Allcock, was quoted as saying peaceful advocacy of Taiwanese independence would not be a crime.
Since rejoining China five years ago, Hong Kong has been constitutionally required to enact an anti-subversion law. The government last week unveiled its plans, which would give police more investigative power and impose up to life in prison for anybody convicted of serious crimes against the state.
Critics fear the law could be used to erode the freedoms that set capitalist Hong Kong apart from the communist mainland -- a charge vehemently denied by the Hong Kong government.
But Allcock said in remarks broadcast on Sunday that Taiwanese here could run afoul of the law if they advocated a military response to any attempt by China to forcibly take the island.
"If someone comes to Hong Kong and starts inciting people to use force to resist the law ... then it could be an offense," Allcock was quoted as saying.
A Justice Department spokeswoman yesterday declined to confirm Allcock's remarks.
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