Security chief says HK preparing for new law
HONG Kong Secretary for Security John Lee Ka-chiu on Monday said the city’s government has started preparatory work to implement the national security law for Hong Kong once it is enacted.
In an interview with Hong Kong newspaper Wen Wei Po, Lee said that although the details of the national security legislation have yet to be finalised, his department has started preparations to make available the human and material resources for the law’s implementation.
The goal is to guarantee sufficient manpower to conduct relevant work, establish a cross-departmental cooperation mechanism and select capable personnel, he said.
Lee also disclosed a plan to beef up training of the police to safeguard national security.
Most of the force’s work centres on maintaining public order, he said. Besides the case of banning the Hong Kong National Party, a local political group that advocated “Hong Kong independence” in 2018, it has relatively limited experience in handling national security-related crimes.
Besides, the government will study other jurisdictions’ experience in enforcing national security laws, and formulate policies to facilitate the law’s implementation in the city, he said.
On Monday, The Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council strongly condemned the US for imposing sanctions on Hong Kong and some US politicians for their verbal attacks on the special administrative region’s autonomy.
US Pre s i dent Donald Tr ump announced last week that Hong Kong’s preferential trade status will be revoked after US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo claimed that Hong Kong no longer enjoyed a high degree of autonomy from China due to the upcoming national security legislation for the city.
An office spokesperson said that safeguarding national security is the top priority of all countries. The US even abused national security to crack down on foreign companies.
The US authorities are not in a position to comment on China’s internal affairs, said the spokesperson. On the contrary, some politicians bear a great responsibility for the grim situation in Hong Kong today.
The spokesperson said: “Some US politicians who are hostile to China and afraid of China’s growth are backing up and providing protection for the radical separatist forces in Hong Kong.
“The future of Hong Kong is in the hands of the 1.4 billion Chinese, including Hong Kong compatriots. The central government will safeguard Hong Kong’s security and support its development, and stand ready to respond to any act that undermines Hong Kong’s prosperity and stability,” the spokesperson added.