Politics

A recent visit to Hong Kong by the new executive deputy director of the central government’s top office for the city’s affairs was likely to have been to check on the progress of the Northern Metropolis megadevelopment, political analysts have said.Xu Qifang, the executive deputy director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office (HKMAO), made his first official visit to the city last week following his appointment earlier this month.According to a statement from the office, Xu led a team to Hong Kong and Macau to carry out research, meet officials from both cities and conduct on-site inspections of the Northern Metropolis and Hengqin cooperation zone, across from Macau.It was believed to be Xu’s first visit to Hong Kong since he was appointed earlier in July, taking over from Zhou Ji, who...

Hongkongers have shared their concerns with the city’s leader on issues such as housing, innovation and technology, youth development and poverty, with the chief executive pledging to continue collecting public views before mapping out “pragmatic” policies.In the first public consultation exercise ahead of his fourth annual policy address, John Lee Ka-chiu on Sunday met about 120 residents at Ma Tau Chung Government Primary School in Hung Hom, a neighbourhood where he grew up.Residents issued a string of calls and suggestions at the two-hour forum, covering topics such as land and housing, transport, innovation and technology, financial services development, culture and sports, education, youth issues, poverty alleviation, healthcare services, social welfare and more.“There are issues that...

Britain has hit out at Hong Kong’s move to place a new round of bounties on 15 overseas activists accused of national security offences, saying it is another example of “transnational repression” that only damages the city’s international reputation.UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy and Home Secretary Yvette Cooper also stressed on Friday that Britain was committed to the safety of all individuals settled there and had taken steps to “complete the severing of ties” between the extradition systems of the country and Hong Kong.“This government will continue to stand with the people of Hong Kong, including those who have made the UK their home. We take the protection of their rights, freedoms, and safety very seriously, and will not tolerate any attempts by foreign governments to coerce, intim...

Hong Kong authorities have defended the need to set up an official registration system for same-sex partnerships, saying that record-keeping alone is insufficient to allow the government to verify marriages overseas.The bill, so far opposed by at least 41 members of the 89-strong Legislative Council, went through its first clause-by-clause examination by the bills committee on Friday morning, when the government rebutted lawmaker Erik Yim Kong’s suggestion to set up a record-keeping system instead.Yim said that a record-keeping arrangement would help minimise the “social impact” and expenditures, and that the government’s plan to set up a registration office and a registrar might “perceptually bring same-sex partnerships to the same level as marriage”.“After completing registration, the sa...

The city’s national security police have placed bounties of up to HK$1 million (US$127,400) on 19 overseas activists involved in a group called “Hong Kong Parliament”, which they called “subversive” and accused of violating the Beijing-imposed security law by holding an unlawful “election”.The arrest warrants announced on Friday were for Elmer Yuan Gong-yi, Victor Ho Leung-mau, Fok Ka-chi, Choi Ming-da, Chan Lai-chun, Feng Chongyi, Sasha Gong, Ng Man-yan, and Tsang Wai-fan, who were accused of establishing the so-called parliament-in-exile in 2022.That year, the group, mainly founded and run by self-exiled activists, formed an “electoral committee” in Canada to hold elections that it said “represents, solidifies and revives Hong Kong people’s rights of self-determination”.In May this year,...

The UK government is planning to reintroduce extradition cooperation with Hong Kong on a “case-by-case basis”, triggering fears that activists seeking refuge in Britain could be sent back to the city.The plan was revealed on Thursday by the UK’s Shadow National Security and Safeguarding Minister Alicia Kearns, who shared on X a letter from Security Minister Dan Jarvis to Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp, in which Jarvis communicated the planned changes to the Extradition Act 2003.Jarvis said the amendments, which were introduced in the House of Commons on July 17, would remove Hong Kong from the Act, so that the UK government could work with the former British colony on a “case-by-case ad hoc basis”.“The safety and security of our citizens is our top priority,” Jarvis wrote. “Ensuring tha...

At least four Hong Kong LGBTQ groups have launched a petition to drum up support for a bill that aims to grant certain rights to same-sex couples, with the legislation facing strong opposition from lawmakers.The joint action by Hong Kong Marriage Equality, Dear Family Hong Kong, Pink Alliance and Covenant of the Rainbow on Thursday came a day after the legislature convened its first meeting to scrutinise the government bill, in which only one lawmaker of the 15-strong committee openly endorsed the proposal.The five-part bill aims to grant same-sex couples rights related to medical matters and after-death arrangements.Couples who have a valid same-sex marriage, partnership or civil union registered in a jurisdiction outside Hong Kong can have their relationship recognised under the proposed...

The UK government prepared a secret contingency plan dubbed “the Armageddon scenario” in the lead-up to the 1997 handover for the evacuation of millions of Hong Kong residents who might have wanted to flee the city, according to newly unsealed documents.The British national archive documents date back to 1989 in the period immediately preceding and following the Tiananmen Square crackdown. A number of scenarios and recommendations for UK authorities were outlined in the event Hong Kong’s return to Chinese rule triggered an exodus of people from the city.The documents, which were made public on Tuesday UK time, stated that the United Kingdom could “not handle a mass evacuation alone” and that other countries would need to help, highlighting the United States as “particularly important”.Repe...

Hong Kong lawmakers have unanimously given the green light for a bill that will expand the scope of financial penalties targeting legislators suspended for misconduct, as part of efforts to better monitor their performance.Eighty-eight lawmakers on Wednesday voted for the Legislative Council (Powers and Privileges) (Amendment) Bill during a 36-minute session that included speeches from four legislators and Chief Secretary Eric Chan Kwok-ki.The amendment will allow Legco to withhold pay and allowances from suspended lawmakers for reasons other than those specified in the existing Rules of Procedure.“This is precisely another example of Legco strengthening its self-governance with higher standards. It fully reflects the strong advantages of the ‘patriots administering Hong Kong’ principle,” ...

Hong Kong authorities have an “ongoing legal duty” to fulfil their responsibilities related to same-sex relationships in response to a landmark court ruling, even if the city’s legislature rejects a proposal to establish a recognition system, the government has said.The government said on Wednesday that the judiciary had not and would not give any direct orders to either the executive or the legislature about fulfilling the ruling.Authorities also argued that the proposal considered the judiciary’s requirements and public sentiments.The proposal is the government's answer to a 2023 ruling from the Court of Final Appeal, which gave authorities two years to draw up laws setting out “core rights” for same-sex couples, but did not outline what they might be.A source told the Post that the gove...