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Public Processions: The Position Overseas
A Government spokesman said today (Friday):
"It is clear that the procedures governing public processions in the UK, the US and Canada are considerably less restrictive than those proposed in the Consultation Paper issued by the Chief Executive Designate's Office.
In the UK, notification only is required, and this requirement does not apply where notification is not reasonably practical.
In the US, although permits are commonly required, a permit must be consistent with the First Amendment to the US Constitution*, which guarantees freedom of speech and assembly. This means that permits must have narrow, objective and definite standards to guide the issuing authority. Those standards must serve relevant public interests like traffic regulation and public safety.
The proposals put forward by the CE's office, on the other hand, would require:
a permit from the Commissioner of Police at least seven days in advance for public processions of more than 30 people or, in exceptional circumstances, 48 hours in advance. No public procession would be permitted with less than 2 days' notice (except for funerals).
the Commissioner of Police would be able to prohibit a procession for a broad range of sweeping reasons. He could ban a procession if he considered it not to be in the interests of:
national security;
the protection of public health or morals;
the protection of the rights and freedoms of others.
The Hong Kong Government's detailed response to the CE Designate's Consultation Document on Civil Liberties and Social Order was set out in a commentary issued on 10 April.