Lam appeals: back off rulings, quit making unfair comments

People should respect court rulings and refrain from making what could be unfair comments, says Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor.

"There have been various opinions about court rulings," Lam said yesterday before an Executive Council meeting. "Some welcome rulings, some do not, but I would like to appeal to citizens to respect the courts' judgment and refrain from unscrupulously commenting on cases."

She added: "Judges took an oath to base judgments on laws and evidence. I hope everyone will allow the courts to execute judicial independence, especially in a polarized political environment."

Lam also said she will not interfere with judicial independence, though Hong Kong runs on an executive-led model with no separation of powers.

She said people should be closer to a true picture of the SAR's political structure after a week of debate since she offered views on the topic.

"The truth that Hong Kong's political structure is executive-led, with the chief executive at its core accountable to the central government, can be gleaned," she said.

But Lam assured people that did not mean the chief executive would interfere with the judiciary.

"The power of the chief executive comes with responsibilities, one of which is to uphold the Basic Law, which includes ensuring the judiciary is free from interference while executing judicial independence," Lam said.

But she sidestepped a question on whether a judiciary monitoring committee or a sentencing commission should be set up amid calls for such an action from the establishment-linked Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong.

Such a committee, it was suggested, would produce recommended sentences for certain offenses.

Legal scholar Eric Cheung Tat-ming said setting up such a commission might not be for the best as it could force judges to hand down sentences that disregard other factors.

"If political parties try to interfere with sentencing in political cases, it will deal a severe blow to the rule of law in Hong Kong as well as judicial independence," he said.

michael.shum@singtaonewscorp.com