China yesterday released a policy white paper on Hong Kong’s practice of safeguarding national security to ensure stability in a volatile world, emphasizing that Beijing has “fundamental responsibility” for national security affairs in the territory.
The white paper was released by China’s State Council a day after a Hong Kong court sentenced leading China critic and former media mogul Jimmy Lai (黎智英) to 20 years imprisonment in a landmark foreign collusion case under the territory’s National Security Law.
Lai’s sentence, the heaviest so far under the China-imposed law, drew international criticism from Taiwan, the US, the UK, the EU, Japan and rights groups.
Photo: Chiang Ying-ying, AP
The white paper said Hong Kong would continue to improve its legal system to safeguard national security.
“Hong Kong, enjoying high-standard security, is bound to overcome all risks and challenges on the journey forward, and remain as steady as a rock in a turbulent world,” it read.
Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee (李家超) welcomed the white paper, saying authorities needed to remain vigilant against national security risks.
He said Lai’s sentence sent a “solemn warning against malicious plots of collusion with external elements and endangering national security.”
Critics say the sweeping national security law has been used to clamp down on dissent and the opposition pro-democracy movement after mass protests in 2019.
However, the white paper described the law as a “legal shield” that had “neutralized this major threat” and restored order.
Hong Kong’s practice of safeguarding national security had “consolidated the security foundation” of the territory’s “one country, two systems” governance model and “further enriched China’s national security system,” the paper said.
Such white papers on Hong Kong are released periodically by China, outlining Beijing’s latest policy stance toward the territory.
The previous white paper in 2021 outlined Hong Kong’s democratic development after a revamp of the electoral system to ensure only “patriots” could run for public office — a move criticized by some countries as an erosion of democratic freedoms by marginalizing opposition democrats.
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