A team established to rebut criticism of Hong Kong’s new security law will continue to operate, the government has said, citing continued “misinformation and slanders from time to time.”
In a written response to questions raised by pro-Beijing lawmaker Starry Lee, the Security Bureau said there remained a “need for the continued operation of the ‘Response and Rebuttal
Team’.”
Authorities announced on January 25 that a special team would be set up to respond and rebut “smears” against new security legislation under Article 23 of the Basic Law, days before they launched a one-month public consultation period for the law.
The team is led by Security Chief Chris Tang. Over the past two months, Tang and the government have condemned several foreign media over their reports about Article 23.
“[The team] is a useful reference for us to effectively clarifying and rebutting future smears in various aspects,” the bureau said in the written response, adding that it would “continue to adopt this effective approach in handling similar issues of concern.”
Lee also asked about the bureau’s estimated expenditure and plan for “explanatory work” linked to the new security law in the coming fiscal year.
The bureau said that its work related to the legislation “is not within the scope of Head 151,” which covers expenditure for the bureau’s office, internal security and immigration control.
“Relevant expenditure will not be disclosed. [The Security Bureau] will ensure that there will be sufficient funds to take forward the work concerned,” the bureau said.
According to Article 19 of the national security law, the financial secretary can allocate money from the government’s general venue to a “special fund” for safeguarding national security. This practice is not subject to any Hong Kong laws, the article stipulates, adding that the finance chief will submit an annual report on the fund to the legislative.
To date, HK$13 billion has been allocated for the fund, with Tang saying last July that national security expenditure was not disclosed to prevent people “guessing” what the government’s national security work entails.
Separate to the 2020 Beijing-enacted security law, the homegrown Safeguarding National Security Ordinance targets treason, insurrection, sabotage, external interference, sedition, theft of state secrets and espionage. It allows for pre-charge detention of to up to 16 days, and suspects’ access to lawyers may be restricted, with penalties involving up to life in prison. Article 23 was shelved in 2003 amid mass protests, remaining taboo for years. But, on March 23, 2024, it was enacted having been fast-tracked and unanimously approved at the city’s opposition-free legislature.
The law has been criticised by rights NGOs, Western states and the UN as vague, broad and “regressive.” Authorities, however, cited perceived foreign interference and a constitutional duty to “close loopholes” after the 2019 protests and unrest.
700,000 tips for national security
Following the enactment of the Beijing-imposed national security law, the National Security Department of the police set up a reporting hotline on November 5, 2020, encouraging the public to provide police with national security-related intelligence.
In response to a question from pro-establishment lawmaker Holden Chow, the Security Bureau said that the hotline had received more than 700,000 “pieces of information” in relation to national security as of March 8.
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