Aussie judge quits HK court

One of the 14 foreign judges on Hong Kong’s highest court has resigned due to concerns over a sweeping new national security law imposed by Beijing on the city, Australia’s national broadcaster reported yesterday.

The office of the city’s leader Carrie Lam confirmed the resignation of Australian judge James Spigelman.

Spigelman, the former chief justice of New South Wales, is the first senior judge to resign and publicly cite the law, passed by China’s parliament on June 30 without any Hong Kong legislative process or consultation.

The Polish-born jurist told the ABC that he had resigned for reasons “related to the content of the national security legislation”.

Spigelman did not immediately respond to a request from Reuters for comment.

Local and international legal circles have been alarmed at Beijing’s imposition of the security law, fearing it erodes the former British colony’s autonomy and freedoms.

Under the security legislation, Lam has the right to select judges for a panel of jurists to handle national security cases.

In the most serious cases, suspects can also be taken to mainland China for trial in its courts, which are ultimately controlled by the Communist Party.

It also grants extensive powers to personnel from mainland China’s security apparatus, who are now based in the city for the first time under the law.

Foreign judges have long been a symbol of the city’s rule of law, helping to replace the role of the Privy Council in London after Britain handed the city back to Chinese rule in 1997.