The government issued a statement late on Saturday night in response to the American newspaperโs piece titled โHong Kongโs nightmare gets darkerโ.
The editorial described as โrepressiveโ the introduction of a mechanism under the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance that allows the city leader to classify legal cases as national security ones.
The government said the subsidiary legislation gazetted last week only aimed to clarify โother offences endangering national securityโ under the relevant legislation and to offer more certainty in their implementation.
โThe Procedural Matters Regulation will in no way infringe any legitimate right of a defendant. Hong Kong is a place underpinned by the rule of law,โ it said.
โThe guilt or innocence of a defendant remains a matter to be adjudicated by the court independently and in accordance with the law. The court will, as always, ensure a defendantโs right to a fair trial.โ