The following is issued on behalf of the Executive Council Secretariat:
The Non-official Members of the Executive Council (ExCo Non-official Members) today (January 30) issued the following statement:
All ExCo Non-official Members firmly support the legislative proposals on Article 23 of the Basic Law as promulgated by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government.
ExCo Non-official Members pointed out that it is the constitutional duty of the HKSAR to enact legislation on Article 23 of the Basic Law (Basic Law Article 23 legislation), and this is the general consensus in society as well. In this regard, the HKSAR must complete the legislative work on Article 23 of the Basic Law as soon as possible. While Basic Law Article 23 legislation must fully implement the requirements set out in the Decision of the National People's Congress (NPC) on Establishing and Improving the Legal System and Enforcement Mechanisms for the HKSAR to Safeguard National Security adopted by the NPC on May 28, 2020, and the Law of the People's Republic of China on Safeguarding National Security in the HKSAR (HKNSL) at the same time, it should also achieve convergence, compatibility and complementarity with the HKNSL, forming an improved and effective legal regime for safeguarding national security.
The HKSAR Government issued a detailed consultation paper today to enable members of the public to understand the legislative proposals clearly and provide comments during the consultation period. ExCo Non-official Members agreed that the consultation period is appropriate and stressed that we must seize the opportunity to legislate as soon as possible in order to effectively respond to and prevent risks and threats that endanger national security. As such, we can go all out to boost the economy and strive for development and work together to ensure Hong Kong's long-term prosperity, stability and the well-being of citizens.
ExCo Non-official Members fully support the HKSAR Government in taking forward Basic Law Article 23 legislation so as to safeguard national security for the steadfast and successful implementation of "one country, two systems".
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