The draft, which also includes new laws encompassing treason, espionage and external interference, is being closely watched by foreign diplomats and businesses who fear it could further dent freedoms in the financial hub already subjected to a China-led crackdown on dissent that has sent many pro-democracy politicians and activists into jail or exile.
The Legislative Council started debating the bill on Friday amid tight security, and several members of the largely pro-Beijing body told reporters they expected the bill to be passed into law before mid-April.
Hong Kong leader John Lee had earlier urged lawmakers to pass the bill “at full speed.”
“The geopolitics have become increasingly complex, and national security risks remain imminent,” a government statement said.
Some lawyers analizing the draft said, at first glance, elements of the revised sentences for some listed offenses are similar to Western ones but some provisions, such as those for sedition and state secrets, are broader and potentially tougher.
The bill includes sentences of up to life imprisonment for treason, insurrection and sabotage, 20 years for espionage and 10 years for crimes linked to state secrets and sedition.
The European Union, in a statement to Reuters, said it had made clear in a diplomatic note its “grave concerns” over the far-reaching provisions in the bill on “external interference” and the law’s extra-territorial reach.
The draft bill, however, noted some rights provisions.
“Human rights are to be respected and protected, the rights and freedoms, including the freedoms of speech, of the press and of publication, the freedoms of association ... are to be protected” the bill read.
Some investors said the desire to fast-track the bill was concerning.
“The fact they are rushing through article 23 shows concern about public opposition. The business community is going to be unhappy unless there are guard rails protecting individual rights,” Andrew Collier, managing director at Hong Kong-based Orient Capital Research said.
CONCERNS OVER FREEDOMS
Hong Kong has long been a business, academic and media hub for China and the region, but in recent years critics say the rule of law and freedom of information have been undermined.
Hong Kong and Chinese officials have said the draft was similar to laws in some Western nations and that it was necessary to plug “loopholes” in the national security regime.
That regime was bolstered in 2020 by another law imposed directly by China which at the time said it was aimed at restoring stability after pro-democracy protests a year earlier.
The debate on the Hong Kong bill coincides with a move by China’s top lawmakers to create a slew of new national security laws in order to safeguard the mainland’s sovereign interests.
The Hong Kong bill proposed extending police detention for those arrested, without charge, for up to 14 days with a magistrate’s approval and potentially limited access to lawyers, compared to 48 hours currently.
The sentences for sedition, defined as inciting disaffection or hatred toward authorities through acts, words or publications, have been expanded from two to up to 10 years for offenses in collusion with foreign forces.
Critics, including media advocacy groups, had earlier called for sedition to be scrapped, noting its potential use to silence freedom of expression and the media.
The bill proposes a jail term of up to 3 years, up from one year, for possessing a seditious publication and police have the right to search any premise to seize and destroy such material.
The definition of state secrets also appears quite broad, some lawyers said, saying it includes military, security and diplomatic secrets as well as classified social, economic and technological information involving China and Hong Kong governments, and their relationship.
Hong Kong’s largest national security trial opened Monday with dozens of pro-democracy figures accused of trying to topple the government in a case critics say reflects the criminalization of dissent in the Chinese territory.
The 47 defendants, who include some of the city’s most prominent activists, face up to life in prison if convicted.
Sixteen have pleaded not guilty to charges of “conspiracy to commit subversion” over an unofficial primary election.
The other 31 have pleaded guilty and will be sentenced after the trial.
A rare, small protest erupted before the court convened, despite the large police presence.
One man was seen raising his fist in solidarity.
Most of the group have already spent nearly two years behind bars.
They now face proceedings expected to last more than four months, overseen by judges handpicked by the government.
The case is the largest to date under the national security law, which China imposed on Hong Kong after huge democracy protests in 2019 brought tear gas and police brawls onto the streets of the Asian financial hub.
Wielded against students, unionists and journalists, the law has transformed the once-outspoken city.
More than 100 people had queued outside the court, some overnight, hoping to see the trial begin on Monday.
Chan Po-ying, a veteran campaigner and wife of defendant “Long Hair” Leung Kwok-hung, joined supporters carrying a banner that read “Crackdown is shameless” and “Immediately release all political prisoners.”
“This is political persecution,” she said outside the court.
Inside, Leung repeated his not-guilty plea, adding: “Resisting tyranny is not a crime.”
Those on trial represent a cross-section of Hong Kong’s opposition — including activists Joshua Wong and Lester Shum, professor Benny Tai and former lawmakers Claudia Mo and Au Nok-hin.
Most — 34 out of 47 — have been denied bail, while the few released from custody must abide by strict conditions, including speech restrictions.
Families of the accused have called these measures “social death.”
The group was jointly charged in March 2021 after organizing an unofficial primary a year earlier.
Their stated aim was to win a majority in the city’s legislature, which would allow them to push the protesters’ demands and potentially force the resignation of Hong Kong’s leader.
According to prosecutors, this was tantamount to trying to bring down the government.
“This case involves a group of activists who conspired together and with others to plan, organize and participate in seriously interfering in, disrupting or undermining (the government)... with a view to subverting the State power,” the prosecution said in its opening statement.
More than 610,000 people — about one-seventh of the city’s voting population — cast ballots in the primary. Shortly afterwards, Beijing brought in a new political system that strictly vetted who could stand for office.
The case has attracted international criticism, and diplomats from 12 countries including the United States, Britain, Australia and France were seen at the court Monday.
“This is a retaliation against all the Hong Kongers who supported the pro-democratic camp,” Eric Lai, a fellow of Georgetown University’s Center for Asian Law, told AFP of the trial.
“Beijing will go all out — even weaponizing the laws and court — to make sure democratic politics in Hong Kong cannot go beyond the lines it drew.”
The trial is being heard in an open court but without a jury, a departure from the city’s common law tradition.
“It is as if the national security law is now the new constitution for Hong Kong and the judges are playing their role in making sure that happens,” said Dennis Kwok, Hong Kong’s former legal sector legislator.
Weeks before the hearing began, Hong Kong’s Chief Justice Andrew Cheung defended the courts against accusations of politicization.
“Whilst inevitably the court’s decision may sometimes have a political impact, this does not mean the court has made a political decision,” Cheung said.
