01 point of view
Written by: Review Editor
2020-05-23 09:00
Last update date: 2020-05-23 09:00After Beijing announced on Thursday (May 21) that the National People's Congress will authorize the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress to formulate the National Security Law of Hong Kong, the society is full of worries and even panic. Netizens popularly searched for "VPN" that night, meaning that they would be held accountable for online remarks; the stock market plummeted by more than 1,000 points the next day. Even considering the technical adjustments, the overall sentiment of the market was still negative.
Hong Kong people are also full of doubts about the local legislation of Article 23 of the Basic Law. When Beijing enacted the National Security Law for Hong Kong, the society was full of worries and panic, which was entirely reasonable and expected. As an emotion, doubt is often not completely rational or completely irrational, but a mixture of the two.
Every time there is a political panic, someone will discuss and search for immigrants. But the reality is that most people do not have the capital to emigrate, the immigration threshold is very high. Therefore, no matter what the cause is, and regardless of the position, Hong Kong people must pragmatically understand this legislation and understand its ins and outs.
Article 18 of the Basic Law is the key
According to Article 2 of the Basic Law, the National People ’s Congress authorizes the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region to enjoy legislative powers. However, the Standing Committee of the National People ’s Congress still retains certain legislative oversight powers, including Article 160 and Article 17 of the Basic Law. Laws that do not comply with the Basic Law are invalid; under Article 18, the NPC Standing Committee can also implement national laws in Hong Kong under two designated circumstances.
According to Article 18 (2) and (3), the Standing Committee of the National People ’s Congress may include non-self-governing national laws in Annex III of the Basic Law, promulgated by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region or implemented by legislation; The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress may declare Hong Kong into a state of emergency so that the Central People's Government can implement national laws in Hong Kong.
The National People's Congress authorized the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress to formulate Hong Kong's National Security Law on the basis of Article 18 (2) and (3) of the Basic Law. National security falls within the scope of non-self-government. For example, Article 23 of the Basic Law, which concerns national security, belongs to Chapter 2 of the Basic Law, "Relationship between the Central Government and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region." Security legislation belongs to the central authority and is beyond doubt. "
Special legislation for Hong Kong
Some people described this approach as bypassing the Legislative Council, but according to Article 18 (2) of the Basic Law, after the NPC Standing Committee incorporated the legislation into Annex III of the Basic Law, it could choose to "promulgate or legislate locally by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region" "Implementation" means that the procedure does not necessarily have to be legislated by the Legislative Council, but can be directly announced and implemented by the government. In the past, the Legislative Council enacted laws such as the National Anthem Act, because those laws were aimed at national implementation, and many expressions, words, and regulations did not apply to Hong Kong. However, this time, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress specifically enacted legislation in response to the situation in Hong Kong. It is known that more than 20 legal scholars have been invited to participate in the drafting.
In other words, the Standing Committee of the National People ’s Congress cannot arbitrarily legislate on Hong Kong, but can only include non-self-governing laws in Annex III in accordance with Article 18 of the Basic Law, and adopt corresponding and appropriate procedures; The National Security Law is copied and used in Hong Kong, but a separate law is established on the situation in Hong Kong.
This legislation is not only unusual, but also touches on the core values of Hong Kong people, and the current political environment is filled with an atmosphere of mutual distrust, so how can society not worry? However, Hong Kong's road must go down. "One country, two systems" must be stable and long-term. Everyone cannot stop worrying, but must also actively understand the current situation and the implementation of "one country, two systems."
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01 point of view
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