Politics

Hong Kong police are following up on an alleged traffic offence involving lawmaker Judy Chan Kapui, who was filmed driving against the flow of traffic in Wan Chai on Friday.Chan confirmed on Friday night that she was the driver of the car in a viral video circulating on social media and apologised for her actions in an interview with the Post, hours after the clip was posted online.“I sincerely apologise for my actions,” Chan said. “This has significantly affected my public image.”The video shows a black car driving along Jaffe Road in the opposite direction of traffic with three fire engines up ahead.Chan said that she was driving to a meeting in Wan Chai around 8am and intended to park in a visitor space at the Everbright Centre car park.Lawmaker Judy Chan. Photo: Karma LoHowever, she sa...

Hong Kong looks to reform sexual offence laws

Any potential Hong Kong cabinet reshuffle will take place only after the investigation into the deadly Tai Po blaze wraps up, sources have told the Post, following a media report suggesting two ministers were set to step down.A government spokesman on Thursday did not deny the report suggesting that Secretary for Housing Winnie Ho Wing-yin and Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Erick Tsang Kwok-wai would step down “in the near future”, adding only that the administration would not comment on “speculative reports”.In response to the rumours, Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu told his cabinet in a meeting on Thursday morning that any move to replace ministers had to be “based on facts” and deferred until the completion of the investigation into the Wang Fuk Court fire last Nove...

Hong Kong authorities have condemned a resolution strongly backed by the European Parliament to sanction officials and revoke the city’s special trade status to protest against former media boss Jimmy Lai Chee-ying’s conviction in a national security trial.The city government on Thursday evening also condemned the body for making “groundless accusations” against Hong Kong and using Lai’s case to smear its national security legislation.“The Hong Kong government strongly urges the European Parliament to get a clear understanding of the facts as soon as possible and turn back from its wrong path,” a spokesman said.Earlier on Thursday, 503 parliament members voted in favour of the non-binding resolution at a plenary session in Strasbourg, France, with only nine voting against it. There were 10...

Hong Kong delegates to China’s top political advisory body are a “steadfast patriotic force” and make an important contribution to the city’s long-term prosperity and stability, Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu has said.The city leader praised the delegates of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) on Wednesday as he hosted Jiang Zuojun, vice-chairman of the body’s 14th National Committee, at Government House.The meeting took place less than two months before the fourth annual sessions of the 14th National Committee of the CPPCC and the 14th National People’s Congress, China’s top legislative body. The sessions will begin on March 4 and 5, respectively.Chief Executive John Lee (right) meets Jiang Zuojun, vice-chairman of the 14th National Committee of the Chinese Pe...

European lawmakers have renewed their calls for the bloc’s executive arm to revoke Hong Kong’s special trade status, and to sanction the city’s chief executive and officials to protest against the conviction of former media boss Jimmy Lai on national security charges.During the debate in the European Parliament on Thursday, Hong Kong time, some MEPs stressed the importance of the EU taking concrete measures in response to the verdict, following a non-binding motion passed in the wake of an earlier national security trial that failed to prompt any action.Lai, the 78-year-old founder of the now-defunct Apple Daily tabloid, could face life imprisonment as he awaits sentencing after being convicted last month of two counts of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces and one count of conspirac...

Hong Kong’s rule of law is “more robust and enduring than the outcome of any single case”, the city’s chief justice has declared after former media boss Jimmy Lai Chee-ying was found guilty in a landmark national security case that drew international scrutiny and criticism.In his speech at a ceremony to mark the opening of the legal year on Monday, Chief Justice Andrew Cheung Kui-nung warned that any calls for the early release of a defendant based on his occupation or political causes were a strike on the city’s rule of law, and that any threat of sanctions against judges had “absolutely no place in a civilised society”.At a press briefing after the ceremony, Cheung also weighed in on the appointment of overseas judges to the city’s top court, noting that many were willing to serve but fo...

The new head of the International Bar Association (IBA) has said that the organisation will speak out if unjustified and illegal sanctions are imposed on legal professionals in Hong Kong.The remarks from IBA president Claudio Visco came during his visit to attend the ceremonial opening of the legal year on Monday, following calls from some US politicians to sanction Hong Kong judges and prosecutors involved in national security cases.Visco said the IBA has consistently spoken out against violations of international law and that Hong Kong would not be excluded from its monitoring efforts.“Whenever sanctions occurred, and [they] were not justified and there were clear violations of international law, we intervened,” he told the Post in an interview on Sunday.He cited the IBA’s condemnation o...

The head of Hong Kong’s Tianjin liaison office has posted online about having received alleged perks, including a private ferry cabin and a five-star hotel suite upgrade, prompting calls for an investigation into a potential conflict of interest.Authorities said on Wednesday that the hotel upgrade costs did not involve public funds, adding that an investigation into the private ferry cabin incident was under way. They also vowed to take serious action if any violations were discovered.Ricky Cheng Chun-sang, director of the government’s Tianjin Liaison Unit under the Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau, had shared photos and selfies on the social media platform Threads allegedly showcasing such offers.Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee, convenor of the government’s key decision-making Executive C...

Beijing’s foreign affairs arm in Hong Kong has “strongly condemned” a group of US senators for pushing what it calls “malicious legislation” that seeks to strip the city’s trade offices in the United States of their special privileges and potentially force their closure.A spokesman for the Commissioner’s Office of the Foreign Ministry in Hong Kong said the senators’ move exposed their “deep-rooted ideological prejudice” and “Cold War mentality”.“Any attempts to smear Hong Kong’s freedom and human rights, or to discredit the successful implementation of ‘one country, two systems’ are mere wishful thinking and are doomed to fail,” the spokesman said on Saturday.Earlier this week, several US senators pushed to introduce legislation targeting Hong Kong Economic and Trade Offices, which they sa...