Alvin Yeung plans extradition counter proposal
Local | 25 Apr 2019 2:16 pm
Civic Party lawmaker Alvin Yeung said today that he is planning to introduce a private member's bill to give local courts the power to handle murder and manslaughter cases from other jurisdictions in which Hong Kong residents are the suspects, RTHK reports.
Yeung said Hong Kong courts already have extraterritorial jurisdiction over child sexual abuse cases, and the lawmaker feels this can be extended to other serious crimes as well.
The opposition legislator is aiming to counter a government proposal to change laws that will allow extraditions to places with which Hong Kong doesn’t have a formal treaty now, including the mainland.
The Carrie Lam administration has sighted a case of Hong Kong suspect in a Taiwan murder case, saying he can't be handed over due to what officials say is a loophole in the existing laws.
Yeung said giving Hong Kong courts power to conduct trial even if the crime took place elsewhere would close a so-called legal loophole which allow fugitives to escape justice, and at the same time address concerns regarding the mainland's legal system.
He said his suggested amendment is simple and could be passed very quickly if the government requests Legco to waive the usual procedures. "It is a matter of political will," he said.
The court is set to sentence the Hong Kong suspect over money laundering charges the police here charged him with on April 29. Experts say he could walk free then even though he had pleaded guilty as he had already been detention for months.-Photo: RTHK
