How the West lost faith in Hong Kong’s judicial system
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Hong Kong — The statements issued by China and Hong Kong after Monday’s arrest of media tycoon Jimmy Lai underline how quickly a national security law passed in June is undermining the city’s independent judicial system.
The Hong Kong police force, on Twitter, disputed a claim it searched the newsroom of Lai’s flagship Apple Daily newspaper without a warrant, and made clear that Lai and others were arrested “in suspicion of breaches” of the security law. CEO Carrie Lam’s government used similar language that offered room for a presumption of innocence, saying they were “suspected” of breaching the law and an investigation is underway.
China’s government, meanwhile, effectively declared them all guilty. The foreign ministry’s representative in Hong Kong called them “anti-China troublemakers”, who put “the long-term stability of Hong Kong in jeopardy”. It accused the Foreign Correspondents’ Club, Hong Kong, of trying to “whitewash” Lai and suggested the organisation is “siding with the forces sowing trouble in Hong Kong and China at large”.
The contrast shows the collision of two vastly different legal systems: one aimed at keeping the Communist Party in power, and another steeped in English Common Law tradition that aspired to treat everyone equally before the law.
Lai, who was released on bail early on Wednesday along with some of the others who were arrested, has long been criticised by the Chinese government, with a publication of the Communist Party’s highest law enforcement body last year branding him a member of a new “Gang of Four”.
For decades, Hong Kong’s legal system underpinned its position as Asia’s top financial centre — a hub for multinationals and global media companies — as well as a trusted neutral jurisdiction for international arbitration involving major firms and even foreign governments.
In just a matter of weeks since China imposed the security law on the former British colony, Hong Kong’s hard-won international legal credibility is swiftly crumbling.
“The huge adverse reaction to the national security law within and outside Hong Kong is an embarrassing setback to the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) efforts to cultivate soft power,” said Jerome Cohen, one of the world’s foremost experts on Chinese law, who has taught the subject since 1960.
“It is a reminder to the world of the notoriously unfair and arbitrary PRC criminal justice system. Beijing is willing to tolerate this because of the greater importance of repressing opposition, even if merely ...
The Hong Kong police force, on Twitter, disputed a claim it searched the newsroom of Lai’s flagship Apple Daily newspaper without a warrant, and made clear that Lai and others were arrested “in suspicion of breaches” of the security law. CEO Carrie Lam’s government used similar language that offered room for a presumption of innocence, saying they were “suspected” of breaching the law and an investigation is underway.
China’s government, meanwhile, effectively declared them all guilty. The foreign ministry’s representative in Hong Kong called them “anti-China troublemakers”, who put “the long-term stability of Hong Kong in jeopardy”. It accused the Foreign Correspondents’ Club, Hong Kong, of trying to “whitewash” Lai and suggested the organisation is “siding with the forces sowing trouble in Hong Kong and China at large”.
The contrast shows the collision of two vastly different legal systems: one aimed at keeping the Communist Party in power, and another steeped in English Common Law tradition that aspired to treat everyone equally before the law.
Lai, who was released on bail early on Wednesday along with some of the others who were arrested, has long been criticised by the Chinese government, with a publication of the Communist Party’s highest law enforcement body last year branding him a member of a new “Gang of Four”.
For decades, Hong Kong’s legal system underpinned its position as Asia’s top financial centre — a hub for multinationals and global media companies — as well as a trusted neutral jurisdiction for international arbitration involving major firms and even foreign governments.
In just a matter of weeks since China imposed the security law on the former British colony, Hong Kong’s hard-won international legal credibility is swiftly crumbling.
“The huge adverse reaction to the national security law within and outside Hong Kong is an embarrassing setback to the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) efforts to cultivate soft power,” said Jerome Cohen, one of the world’s foremost experts on Chinese law, who has taught the subject since 1960.
“It is a reminder to the world of the notoriously unfair and arbitrary PRC criminal justice system. Beijing is willing to tolerate this because of the greater importance of repressing opposition, even if merely ...
