HK to remain a free society: CE

May 22, 2020

Chief Executive Carrie Lam: 

I'm about to finish my third year in office as the Chief Executive. I did say at the very beginning that enacting local legislation for national security under Article 23 of the Basic Law is the constitutional duty of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government and myself as the Chief Executive. I have made attempts, some serious attempts to try to create a better environment, which means that the Government needs to work with parties across the political spectrum in order to create that sort of more conducive environment for doing something which has proven to be very controversial about 16 to 17 years ago. But unfortunately, despite a pretty peaceful start for a while, the relationship turned very difficult once we touched on sensitive issues that have a Mainland angle. And you know what I mean. So, I have been trying my best, but since we could not do it, I don't think we could do it in the foreseeable future, both in the executive as well as the legislature.

I'm not giving up, but there is now another way of ensuring that Hong Kong will have the necessary legislation and the safeguards in place for national security.

Hong Kong will remain to be a very free society where freedom of expression, freedom of protest, freedom of journalism will stay because these are the core values of Hong Kong and are very much protected by the Basic Law. 

The important thing is for the people of Hong Kong to realise that without protection of national security, many of the things that we enjoy, many of the things that we treasure will be lost. So this is really the time for us not to waste any more time and to get on with these important legislative safeguards.

(To watch the full press briefing with sign language interpretation, click here.)

Chief Executive Carrie Lam today said Hong Kong will remain a free society, but if national security is not protected, many of the things that the city treasures will be lost.

Mrs Lam made the statement when she met the media this evening.

She said: “Hong Kong will remain to be a very free society where freedom of expression, freedom of protest, freedom of journalism will stay because these are the core values of Hong Kong and are very much protected by the Basic Law.

“The important thing is for the people of Hong Kong to realise that without protection of national security, many of the things that we enjoy, many of the things that we treasure will be lost."

Mrs Lam also said she has made attempts to create a more conducive atmosphere for enacting local legislation for national security under Article 23 of the Basic Law.

“But unfortunately, despite a pretty peaceful start for a while, the relationship turned very difficult once we touched on sensitive issues that have a Mainland angle.

“Since we could not do it, I don't think we could do it in the foreseeable future, both in the executive as well as the legislature.

“I'm not giving up, but there is now another way of ensuring that Hong Kong will have the necessary legislation and the safeguards in place for national security.”