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Panel votes to amend Hong Kong's civil liberties laws

protesters

British governor calls move 'very disturbing'

February 1, 1997
Web posted at: 10:00 a.m. EST (1500 GMT)

In this story:

BEIJING (CNN) -- A Beijing-backed panel preparing for Hong Kong's return to Chinese rule voted Saturday to rewrite the territory's civil liberties laws, a decision that sparked bitter condemnations from Hong Kong's pro-democracy advocates.

The recommendation by the Preparatory Committee affects Hong Kong's bill of rights and two ordinances that make it easier to hold demonstrations and form associations. Only one of the committee's 150 members voted against the move. Ten panelists abstained.

"They were talking about striking out the laws, which I could not agree to," said Allen Lee, chairman of the Liberal Party, who abstained from voting.

The Preparatory Committee, comprised of Chinese officials and Hong Kong notables, left the job of rewriting the laws to China's largely rubber-stamp National People's Congress.

It will then be up to Hong Kong's first post-colonial government to decide whether and how to redraft the laws, said Tung Chee-hwa, the shipping tycoon chosen to run that administration. Tung defended the Preparatory Committee's decision.

British governor denounces action

China had demanded the changes before the end of British rule, because Beijing says the laws conflict with the constitution Beijing drafted for Hong Kong in 1990. China assumes control of Hong Kong on July 1.

Hong Kong's British governor, Chris Patten, called "today's reports from Beijing very disturbing."

"What we are still not told is why it is necessary to restrict Hong Kong's civil liberties," Patten said in Hong Kong, where pro-democracy supporters took to the streets protesting the gesture.

Tung: Human rights not issue

Tung, who attended the crucial vote, said Patten and Hong Kong's democrats were "wrong" to warn that rolling back the laws would damage confidence in the territory.

Under the Preparatory Committee's recommendations, the 1991 Bill of Rights will no longer override other laws. Tung said that supremacy was never necessary since the Basic Law, Hong Kong's China-drafted constitution, guarantees the same basic rights.

"I think things are being done in a very orderly, proper manner," Tung said. "This is not about human rights. This is not about going backwards."

He added that the committee's decision to allow his government to review the laws after July 1 proves Beijing will live up to its commitment to giving Hong Kong autonomy.

"After 1998 (when a new legislature is elected), we are masters of our own house. We can decide what is right for ourselves, what is right for our community," Tung said.

Is autonomy threatened?

But Patten said the whole process seemed to invite Beijing's interference.

"Will Hong Kong people really be able to decide for themselves, as promised, how to run their domestic affairs, or will the decisions which matter be dictated by others?" Patten asked.

Hong Kong's colonial government adopted the bill of rights in 1991, two years after the Chinese military quelled student-led demonstrations at Tiananmen Square in Beijing and shattered confidence in the colony.

The bill of rights was given supremacy over other laws, and two ordinances on public order and associations later were amended to meet the bill's conditions on upholding freedom of speech and association.

Beijing objected throughout, saying the changes contradicted its agreement with Britain on Hong Kong's return. At the time, both sides agreed that Hong Kong's laws and legal system would not be changed.

 
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