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By Chen Yu-fu and Fion Khan / Staff reporter, with staff writer
Legislative and judicial checks and balances in Hong Kong have become dysfunctional under Beijing’s policy of “national security first and executive-led governance,” the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said in a report released today, ahead of the 29th anniversary of the territory’s handover to China tomorrow.
The report, titled Analysis Report: 29 Years After Hong Kong’s Handover, said that the Hong Kong government is replicating the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) stability maintenance model to exert political, educational, social, economic and judicial control.
Hong Kong authorities are aggressively promoting patriotic, pro-CCP education, expanding the national security legal framework and closely aligning the territory’s foreign policy positions with Beijing, prompting international concern over the erosion of its remaining autonomy under the “one country, two systems” framework, the report said.
Photo: AFP
Beijing’s white paper on the practice of safeguarding national security in Hong Kong, along with statements from high-ranking Chinese officials handling Hong Kong affairs, underscore that “national security first and executive-led governance” remains the bedrock of Beijing’s policy toward the territory, it said.
During the election for the eighth Hong Kong Legislative Council, new lawmakers were explicitly told to support government administration rather than challenge it, it added.
The Hong Kong government has continually amended the implementation rules of Article 43 of Hong Kong’s National Security Law and enacted the Safeguarding National Security (Procedural Matters) Regulation through the “negative vetting” mechanism, allowing the law to be gazetted and to take effect before legislative scrutiny, the report said.
The new regulation, which allows the Hong Kong chief executive to certify a criminal case as a national security offense, came into effect on June 9, it said.
The regulation has sparked debate over executive overreach eclipsing legislative and judicial powers, while exacerbating public anxiety over expanding national security “red lines,” the report said.
Regarding social controls, national security restrictions and patriotic education continue to expand across Hong Kong, the report said.
Rallies and marches marking May Day, June 4, and July 1 remain banned, while cases of censorship and suppression targeting press freedom and artistic creation continue to emerge, it said.
Authorities are reshaping history through textbook revisions and narratives at public exhibitions, prompting public concern that teaching that solely emphasizes “political correctness” could hinder the ability of students to develop independent thinking, the report said.
The Hong Kong government’s plan to step up its public surveillance system every year has drawn criticism and fears that it is copying the CCP’s stability maintenance system, it said.
Regarding the judiciary, Hong Kong’s legal system continues to operate under common law, and international standards for civil, commercial and criminal cases unrelated to national security, the report said.
However, the international community has expressed concern over the pressure faced by the judiciary in national security cases, noting that the repeated postponement of national security trials effectively prolongs detentions and severely violates human rights, it said.
Jimmy Lai (黎智英), founder of the now-shuttered newspaper Apple Daily, was sentenced to 20 years in prison after being held in long-term detention, drawing strong condemnation from across the globe, it said.
The Hong Kong government’s harassment of the relatives of wanted dissidents living in Hong Kong and its transnational repression tactics are intended to create a chilling effect, drawing global condemnation for human rights violations, the report said.
Regarding relations between China and Hong Kong, Beijing’s 15th five-year plan not only reiterates that Hong Kong must “integrate,” but also emphasizes that it must “serve” the broader development of China, it said.
The Hong Kong government is this year set to formulate its first five-year plan to align with Beijing’s blueprint, sparking public concern over whether Hong Kong’s policy autonomy and free economic system could be affected, it said.
Despite these developments, people-to-people exchanges and economic ties between Taiwan and Hong Kong remain frequent, the MAC said.
Last year, Hong Kong remained Taiwan’s fifth-largest export market, while Taiwan was Hong Kong’s second-largest trading partner, the council said.
Travel between the two sides exceeded 1 million visits, making each the other’s second-largest source of tourists, it said.
The government continues to integrate resources from local authorities and civil groups to introduce friendly policies and diverse channels to help Hong Kong students and immigrants settle in Taiwan, the MAC said.
The government would continue to follow President William Lai’s (賴清德) 17 strategic directives to counter national security and “united front” threats, refine risk management mechanisms and safeguard Taiwan’s democracy, freedom, prosperity and security, it added.