Lam slams UK group for meddling in HK

Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor on Tuesday condemned a United Kingdom political group for its “unfair and unfounded” attacks on Hong Kong’s rule of law and judicial independence.

Hong Kong Watch on Monday released a 10-page report which claimed China’s central government has continued to “erode Hong Kong’s autonomy and freedoms” by making moves such as giving a nod to the Hong Kong-mainland joint-checkpoint plan for the city’s Express Rail Link terminus.

Speaking to the media before the weekly Executive Council meeting, Lam criticized such allegations as “extremely inappropriate”; the claims constituted interference in Hong Kong’s internal affairs.

She said the report, compiled by Paddy Ashdown, the former Liberal Democrats leader in the UK, was very unfair and unfounded.

“I take great exception to the comments and conclusions in the report. We have seen no evidence of that,” said Lam. She noted that the report arose from a very brief visit by one of the group’s members, and perhaps only talking to some politicians and legal experts in the city.

In fact, rule of law and judicial independence are the most critical core values of Hong Kong and have received recognition worldwide, Lam said.

Studies by international organizations correlated with Lam’s argument. The World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Report 2016-17 found Hong Kong was the only Asian economy to be ranked among the top 10 on judicial independence, out of 138 jurisdictions worldwide, and came third among commonlaw jurisdictions.

The Worldwide Governance Indicators of the World Bank, which provide trends over longer periods, found Hong Kong’s percentile ranking in rule of law had improved from 69.9 percent in 1996 to 93.3 percent in 2016. Over the 20 years, its ranking rose from around 70 to a top-15 place.

“If not for the reputation, I believe there would not be that many extraordinary and prominent foreign judges joining Hong Kong’s Court of Final Appeal as overseas nonpermanent judges,” she said.

Thus she called on relevant British politicians to look at the matters objectively.

Lam also expressed concerns that some “pan-democrats” in the city were indifferent to the unfounded allegations on Hong Kong but politicized the central government’s efforts to integrate the city into the nation’s development.

She called on Hong Kong people to “speak up” when encountering such foreign interference.