In the past few months, the COVID-19 pandemic has dealt a heavy blow to the global economy as well as people’s livelihood. Hong Kong, an international city with a population of 7.48 million occupying merely 1,106 square kilometers, faced huge difficulties in preventing the spread of the virus. From the beginning, the SAR Government was decisive and adopted a well-balanced approach by suitably adjusting social distancing and implementing quarantine measures in accordance with the situation. This, together with a highly vigilant community, made it possible for the city to swiftly contain the virus. So far only about 1,260 cases were recorded, with a single-digit death toll (7). Moreover, most recent cases were imported.
While the pandemic situation is largely stabilized, members of the public are still taking various preventive measures and remain highly vigilant, reflecting the quality of the people of Hong Kong and the SAR Government’s determination and capability to have the pandemic under control. On a similar note, the ICAC has remained relentless during the pandemic in battling corruption through law enforcement, prevention, community education and international liaisons.
In the first six months of this year, the ICAC has received 995 corruption complaints. Of these, 57 per cent concerns the private sector, 33 per cent relates to government departments and 9 per cent involves public bodies. Although court proceedings of some of the cases were inevitably delayed due to the pandemic, the ICAC continues to pursue each and every complaint and handle all investigations professionally and impartially.
On preventive education, the Corruption Prevention Department continues to assist government departments and public bodies to strengthen their graft prevention mechanism and provide corruption prevention consultancy services to the private sector. The Community Relations Department promotes the probity message through web media and online platforms. Integrity talks and workshops are conducted for different sectors via online video conferencing.
Meanwhile, Hong Kong’s graft-fighting efforts continue to achieve international recognition. According to the World Competitiveness Yearbook 2020 released by the Swiss-based International Institute for Management Development (IMD), notwithstanding a slight drop in the overall ranking due to the social unrests and sluggish economic performance last year, Hong Kong was ranked 12th this year under the indicator “Bribery and Corruption”, two places up from last year. IMD also remarked that Hong Kong was a place where “bribery and corruption do not exist”.
Since its reunification with the Mainland 23 years ago, Hong Kong has seen the successful implementation of “One Country, Two Systems”. Its strong rule of law and independent judiciary have always been highly praised internationally. Hong Kong has an export-oriented economy. In order for the city to fully leverage on its competitive edge, a strong rule of law, a culture of integrity, social stability as well as law and order are of paramount importance. To this end, safeguarding national security has become the cornerstone of sustained development of Hong Kong’s advantages.
Regrettably Hong Kong has been traumatized by a spate of public protests since June last year. Violence of thugs has kept escalating. Rioters have been found to be in possession of firearms and ammunitions. Explosives were manufactured. All these have posed risks of terrorism. Meanwhile, external forces have stepped up their involvements in these activities. Illegal activities of the radicals have been blatantly glorified. The rule of law and public order are at stake while the local economy and people’s livelihood are seriously affected. The pillars on which Hong Kong’s success was founded have been greatly undermined. But most of all, the sovereignty and security of our country are endangered. Hong Kong has become a gap in national security.
As Hong Kong is an inalienable part of the People’s Republic of China, it has the responsibility under Article 23 of the Basic Law to enact law on its own to prohibit any act of treason, secession, sedition, subversion against the Central People’s Government, or theft of state secrets, to prohibit foreign political organisations or bodies from conducting political activities in the HKSAR, and to prohibit political organisations or bodies of the HKSAR from establishing ties with foreign political organisations and bodies. Unfortunately the HKSAR has not been able to do this in the last 23 years. In view of the prevailing threats, national security legislation has become necessary and compelling. The Basic Law of the HKSAR stipulates that where circumstances pertaining to matters outside the limits of Hong Kong’s autonomy, including defence and foreign affairs, national laws shall be listed in Annex III of the Basic Law and shall be applied in Hong Kong by way of promulgation or legislation by the HKSAR. Hence, in May this year, the National People's Congress (NPC), in accordance with the Constitution of the People's Republic of China and the Basic Law, decided to establish and improve the legal system and enforcement mechanisms for safeguarding national security in the HKSAR. The law was passed unanimously by the NPC on June 30, 2020 and gazetted for promulgation by the HKSAR.
The establishing and enactment of The Law of the People’s Republic of China on Safeguarding National Security in the HKSAR (the law) is no doubt constitutional, lawful and reasonable. National security is a matter belonging to the central authority. Whether a country adopts a unitary or a federal system, the legislative power for national security belongs to the central authority instead of a local government. The law will not affect the “One Country, Two Systems” or the high level of autonomy of Hong Kong. It will not affect Hong Kong’s independent judiciary, rule of law or the legal rights of citizens.
For example, it is clearly stated in Article 4 of the law that the rights and freedoms, including the freedom of speech, of the press, of publication, of association, of assembly, of procession and of demonstration, which the residents of Hong Kong enjoy under the Basic Law and the provisions of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights as applied to Hong Kong, shall be protected in accordance with the law.
In addition, Article 5 stipulates that the principle of the rule of law shall be adhered to in preventing, suppressing and imposing punishment for offences endangering national security. A person who commits an act which constitutes an offence under the law shall be convicted and punished in accordance with the law. While a person is presumed innocent until convicted by a judicial body, the rights that a suspect in judicial proceedings are entitled to under the law shall be protected.
Meanwhile, Article 12 of the law provides that Hong Kong shall establish the Committee for Safeguarding National Security, comprising the Chief Executive and relevant principal officials of the HKSAR. The Committee shall assume primary responsibility for safeguarding national security in Hong Kong. To ensure that cases in relation to national security shall be subject to the same safeguards in enforcement and independent judiciary, they shall be handled mainly by the Hong Kong authorities, including the Hong Kong Police Force which will be responsible for investigation, the Department of Justice which will decide if a prosecution should be instigated, and the courts of Hong Kong which will hear such cases.
The establishment of the law will help restore law and order in Hong Kong and plug the loophole in the need for national security. It will ensure that “One country, Two systems” shall remain viable and steadfast. It will revive the city’s prosperity. We believe that the law, together with the society’s deep-rooted core values such as integrity, fairness as well as other inherent advantages, will further enhance Hong Kong’s excellent business environment and restore the confidence of overseas investors in the economy, so that Hong Kong will continue to thrive and be a safe place for people to work and live.
A Chinese proverb says: “Just as the celestial bodies never run out of energy to orbit, we should always strive to better and improve ourselves.” While the global pandemic situation remains volatile and it may take some time for the macro economy to recover, it is perhaps the best of time for Hong Kong to equip itself in order to emerge even stronger. As a dedicated graft-fighting agency in Hong Kong, the ICAC will remain committed to combatting corruption and fostering a culture of probity in the community. We will also join hands with other government departments and law enforcement authorities to uphold the rule of law and a level-playing field for business so that Hong Kong will excel in its role as an international financial centre.
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