Hong Kong security chief says ‘no comment’ on possibility of armed mainland intelligence officers
蘋果日報 2020/06/17 20:55
Hong Kong’s Secretary for Security John Lee
The security minister of Hong Kong has withheld comment on a claim that Chinese government personnel may carry firearms while discharging their duties to enforce the new national security law, according to a local media report.
The question of firearms was raised in an interview about how mainland officers would operate in the city after the new law came into force, Hong Kong newspaper Ming Pao reported on Wednesday.
Ming Pao, citing sources close to the Chinese central government, reported that Beijing preferred firearms licences to be issued by the Hong Kong police if mainland intelligence officers were to be armed. The police chief has the power to grant such licences to individuals under the Firearms and Ammunition Ordinance.
Hong Kong’s Secretary for Security John Lee, in an interview with Ming Pao, did not comment on the claims.
However, he emphasized that firearms were regulated in Hong Kong. All law enforcement officers, no matter where they were from, must obey Hong Kong laws, he said, adding that this applied to “any new law or any law made in any other way in the future.”
The national security law, rubber-stamped by China’s national legislature last month, bans acts of subversion, secession, terrorism and foreign interference. Concerns are widespread over its effect on freedoms now enjoyed in the semi-autonomous Hong Kong but unseen in mainland China.
The law is also expected to enable Beijing to establish intelligence agencies in Hong Kong. Earlier, Lee revealed that a new police unit would be set up with intelligence gathering, investigation and training capabilities.
In Wednesday’s report, Lee said the new law would define the relationship between Hong Kong and mainland agencies. Coordination mechanisms governing intelligence sharing and training would be in place, he said.
Asked if he would suggest to the central government that it might be unnecessary to establish intelligence units in Hong Kong, Lee said Beijing’s judgement was “of a much higher level” and its decision should be respected.
Lee also declined to comment on whether suspects would be transferred to the mainland to stand trial — a controversial issue that is behind the year-long social unrest in Hong Kong. He dismissed the question as impractical as details of the law had not yet been released.
The question of firearms was raised in an interview about how mainland officers would operate in the city after the new law came into force, Hong Kong newspaper Ming Pao reported on Wednesday.
Ming Pao, citing sources close to the Chinese central government, reported that Beijing preferred firearms licences to be issued by the Hong Kong police if mainland intelligence officers were to be armed. The police chief has the power to grant such licences to individuals under the Firearms and Ammunition Ordinance.
Hong Kong’s Secretary for Security John Lee, in an interview with Ming Pao, did not comment on the claims.
However, he emphasized that firearms were regulated in Hong Kong. All law enforcement officers, no matter where they were from, must obey Hong Kong laws, he said, adding that this applied to “any new law or any law made in any other way in the future.”
The national security law, rubber-stamped by China’s national legislature last month, bans acts of subversion, secession, terrorism and foreign interference. Concerns are widespread over its effect on freedoms now enjoyed in the semi-autonomous Hong Kong but unseen in mainland China.
The law is also expected to enable Beijing to establish intelligence agencies in Hong Kong. Earlier, Lee revealed that a new police unit would be set up with intelligence gathering, investigation and training capabilities.
In Wednesday’s report, Lee said the new law would define the relationship between Hong Kong and mainland agencies. Coordination mechanisms governing intelligence sharing and training would be in place, he said.
Asked if he would suggest to the central government that it might be unnecessary to establish intelligence units in Hong Kong, Lee said Beijing’s judgement was “of a much higher level” and its decision should be respected.
Lee also declined to comment on whether suspects would be transferred to the mainland to stand trial — a controversial issue that is behind the year-long social unrest in Hong Kong. He dismissed the question as impractical as details of the law had not yet been released.
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