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The Legal System
pursuant to the Basic Law, judges from other common law jurisdictions may be invited to sit on the Court of Final Appeal.
Law in the HKSAR
The laws in force in the HKSAR are:
(a) the Basic Law;
(b) national laws listed in Annex III to the Basic Law (there are currently 12 such laws), as
applied to the HKSAR by way of promulgation or legislation;
(c) the laws in force before 1 July 1997 (including the common law, rules of equity and customary law as well as statutory law), other than those not adopted as laws of the HKSAR by the NPC's Standing Committee because they contravene the Basic Law; and
(d) laws enacted by the HKSAR's legislature.
National laws that may be added to Annex III to the Basic Law are confined to those relating to defence and foreign affairs, as well as other matters outside the HKSAR's autonomy.
All legislation in force in the HKSAR is bilingual, and the Chinese and English texts are equally authentic. All legislation is published in a hard-copy loose-leaf edition and is also available for free reference on the internet at www.legislation.gov.hk. With the enactment of the Legislation Publication Ordinance in 2011, preparation is now under way for the establishment of a new electronic legislation database with legal status.
Legal Protection for Rights of the Individual
Chapter III of the Basic Law prescribes the fundamental rights and freedoms of people in Hong Kong. In particular, Article 39 provides that the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) as applied to Hong Kong shall remain in force. Additionally, the Hong Kong Bill of Rights Ordinance gives domestic effect to the provisions of the ICCPR as applied to Hong Kong.
Protection is also provided in the Sex Discrimination Ordinance, the Disability Discrimination Ordinance, the Family Status Discrimination Ordinance and the Race Discrimination Ordinance which are enforced by the Equal Opportunities Commission. The Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance, which is administered by the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data, protects the right to privacy with respect to personal data.
United Nations Human Rights Treaties
Fifteen international human rights treaties are applicable to Hong Kong. Seven of these (the ICCPR, the ICESCR, the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Convention on the
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