Hong Kong leader assures security laws will not affect rights and freedoms of city

Hong Kong’s chief executive Carrie Lam urged residents to wait for the details of the proposed national security legislation saying it would not affect the city’s rights and freedoms. During a regular weekly press conference, the Hong Kong leader said that there is no need to worry about the legislation without elaborating on how the higher degree of autonomy will be upheld.

Lam said that Hong Kong has always been able to uphold and preserve freedom of speech and expression and freedom to protest in the last 23 years. She asserted that it is the best thing to see the legislation and understand why Hong Kong needs it at this point in time. Lam’s comments came after protesters took to the streets of the city to demonstrate against the proposed law as they fear it would impact the autonomy of the region.

Earlier, Hong Kong’s security chief had extended his support to China’s proposed national security legislation saying the city has lost its peace with growing terrorism.  John Lee, Secretary for Security, said in a statement that violence has been escalating in Hong Kong with many cases involving explosives and genuine firearms.

“Terrorism is growing in the city and activities which harm national security, such as ‘Hong Kong independence’, become more rampant,” said Lee.

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Referring to pro-democracy protests, the 62-year-old security chief for China’s semi-autonomous region said that Hong Kong has changed from one of the safest cities in the world to a city shrouded in the shadow of violence. Lee displayed his support for the bill presented by the National People’s Congress and said that it will lead all disciplinary forces to discharge their duties for safeguarding national security.

Taiwan's warning

The United States, Britain, the European Union, and other countries have raised concerns over the proposed legislation. Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen even said that the proposed legislation may prompt the self-governing island republic to revoke the special status it has extended to Hong Kong.

Read: Hong Kong's Security Chief Backs China's Proposed Law, Says 'terrorism' Growing In City