Hong Kong has revealed the draft text of its new, homegrown security law, set to arrive at the legislature on Friday. It comes just nine days after the end of a public consultation which prompted more than 13,000 submissions. HKFP shares the full text below – stay tuned as our team analyses its contents throughout the day.
The Legislative Council (LegCo) will convene a special meeting at 11 am on Friday for the first reading of the Safeguarding National Security Bill – or Article 23 – according to its schedule.
Chief Executive John Lee said in a statement on Thursday that he had notified LegCo President Andrew Leung that “both the government and the Legislative Council have the responsibility to, and must, make every endeavour to complete the enactment of the legislation at the earliest possible time.”
See also: Article 23 then and now: What changed between 2002 and 2024
Article 23 of the Basic Law stipulates that the government shall enact laws on its own to prohibit acts of treason, secession, sedition and subversion against Beijing. Its legislation failed in 2003 following mass protests and it remained taboo until after the onset of the separate, Beijing-imposed security law in 2020. Pro-democracy advocates fear it could have a negative effect on civil liberties but the authorities say there is a constitutional duty to ratify it.
The swift submission to lawmakers also came after China’s Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang urged a swift enactment of Article 23 earlier on Thursday, as he held talks with the city’s deputies to the National People’s Congress, China’s legislature.
According to local media reports, authorities hope to have the bill passed by National Security Education Day on April 15.
Article 23 security law bill in full:
- Hong Kong proposes dissolving organisations accused of ‘external interference’
- Threshold for early release may be raised for national security prisoners, draft bill says
- Hong Kong proposes life sentences for treason, insurrection, sabotage
- New powers mulled for police, courts to limit nat. security detainees’ access to lawyers
- Hong Kong proposes cancelling ‘absconders’ passports under new security law
- Public interest defence proposed for some ‘state secrets’ offences in draft security law
- Hong Kong proposes raising max. penalty for sedition to 10 years under new sec. law
- Courts could extend detention without charge for 2 weeks, draft nat. sec. bill suggests
- Hongkongers may face 7 years jail for ‘inciting disaffection’ of public officers
- Hong Kong’s business community expresses concern over proposed new security law
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