The Hong Kong government has proposed amendments to its draft homegrown security law which could impose stricter measures against “absconders” and empower the city’s leader to draft subsidiary legislation.
Officials read out the proposed revisions to the Safeguarding National Security Bill at the Legislative Council’s Bills Committee on Thursday. The revisions were based on suggestions made by lawmakers over six days of committee meetings, which ended on Wednesday.
The amendments propose scrapping a six-month wait until authorities can designate a wanted individual as an absconder – a status which allows authorities to levy sanctions including cancelling their passports and banning anybody from providing them with funding.
With the window axed, such measures could be taken any time after an arrest warrant is issued. The revision came after lawmakers said in the Tuesday meeting that the window made the proposal “too lenient.”
“Most [m]embers of the Bills Committee strongly opposed the [six-month window] condition,” a footnote in the amendment document read, adding that authorities agreed with their views “after consideration” and had decided to delete the relevant clause.
Separately, an addition to the draft bill states that the chief executive “may make subsidiary legislation for safeguarding national security” after consulting with advisory body Executive Council. The powers will allow authorities to “deal with unforeseen circumstances.”
The maximum penalty for breaching subsidiary legislation is proposed to be HK$500,000 and seven years’ imprisonment.
Under a section on offences linked to “prohibited organisations,” a new clause was added specifying that the laws also apply to “shadow organisations” that may consist of members of the dissolved organisation.
Another amendment could grant anonymity orders to public servants, judiciary staff, lawyers and witnesses linked to national security cases. A breach of the order could be punishable by up to five years in jail.
The document, however, added that a defence could be made that a person had a “reasonable excuse or lawful authority” to disclose someone’s identity.
Law to pass as early as April
Thursday marked the last day of meetings by the committee, which completed an initial review of the draft law the day before. The 15 lawmakers took a group photo after finishing discussion of the amendments.
Hong Kong is in the midst of legislating its own domestic security law, which it is obliged to do under Article 23 of the city’s Basic Law. It is separate from the national security law that Beijing imposed on the city in 2020, after widespread protests the previous year.
The homegrown security legislation will cover five offences: treason, insurrection, theft of state secrets and espionage, sabotage endangering national security, and external interference.
With the bills committee finishing their meetings, the draft bill will now go to a full meeting of the Legislative Council’s 89 lawmakers for discussion. This will be held the coming Wednesday at the earliest, local media reported.
It is expected to be passed swiftly by the “patriots-only” Legislative Council, which lost its opposition members after the government overhauled election rules to introduce candidate screenings and nomination requirements.
Local media outlets reported that the law could be passed as early as next month.
In 2003, the last time Hong Kong attempted to legislate Article 23, an estimated 500,000 protesters marched to oppose the law. Public opposition in the city this time around has been muted with the Beijing-imposed national security law in effect.
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