John Lee appeals to communities for full support of legislative exercise on Article 23

Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu said the government is now preparing works for the legislative exercise on Article 23 of the Basic Law and appealed to different community sectors for their full support.

Delivering a video speech on the launching ceremony of the Territory-wide Inter-school National Security Knowledge Challenge, Lee noted that tomorrow (Dec 4) is Constitution Day and the Constitution and the Basic Law together form the constitutional order of the city.

He added that Article 23 stipulates the HKSAR shall enact laws on its own to prohibit acts and activities that endanger national security. To discharge the constitutional responsibility to safeguard national security, the government has begun the preparatory work for the legislation of Article 23.

The Hong Kong leader said that upon completing the legislation next year and bringing the Hong Kong National Security Law together, there will be an effective national security legal system and enforcement mechanisms for safeguarding national security in the city.

Officiating at the ceremony of the National Security Knowledge Challenge, Secretary for Justice Paul Lam Ting-kwok said it is not only a legal responsibility for citizens to respect and abide by laws in safeguarding national security but also a due obligation.

He added that educating citizens to safeguard national security proactively is a significant challenge, and he hopes the public will not be misled by the despicable and fallacious remarks that maliciously smeared the national security law.