GOVERMENT HOUSE HONG KONG.
THU 21 JÂN 23 II:15
PG.02
1.6
1.7
1.8
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ARTICLE 19 and The Hong Kong Journalists Association
right. As a matter of some urgency, full democracy should be introduced to comply with the intended spirit of the Joint Declaration.
[Sections 2.1 and 2.9]
Some other provisions in the Basic Law are, or may well be, inconsistent with the Joint Declaration and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which is incorporated in Article 39 of the Basic Law. These clearly put into question the protection of freedom of expression and other freedoms Hong Kong people presently enjoy and should be brought into line with the terms of the Covenant. Their continued protection after 1997 was one of the key principles of the Joint Declaration.
[Section 2.4]
Among those provisions requiring revision, one of the most alarming is Article 23 of the Basic Law which requires legislation prohibiting, inter alia, treason, secession, sedition, subversion, links with foreign organizations and political parties and the theft of state secrets. Subversion particularly has no equivalent concept in Hong Kong's legal system.
[Sections 2.5 - 2.7]
Article 18 of the Basic Law which empowers China to declare an emergency in the event that "national unity or security" is threatened should be amended to ensure that an emergency may only be declared if the security of Hong Kong is endangered. China's powers under Article 18 should be reviewed since they are inconsistent with the Joint Declaration which specified that such powers should be vested in the SAR government.
[Section 2.8]
1.9
1.10
Article 27 of the Basic Law lists certain rights inoluding film of expression but does not define them in any detail. This article should be expanded to explicitly include the right to seek, receive and impart information and thereby rule out any confusion that may arise as to whether it or Article 16 of the Bill of Rights (incorporated under Article 39) prevails in any future legal proceedings.
[Section 2.3]
China should ratify the ICCPR because as a non-signatory state it is under no direct obligation to ensure the proper implementation of the Covenant after 1997.
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[Section 2.4]