Hong Kong authorities expect further ‘smears’ of Article 23 national security law by ‘external forces and runaways’, security chief Chris Tang says

“We expect that after the bill is introduced, the people we want to guard against ... will do more smear work, and the public must recognise the truth that Article 23 is here to protect our safety.”

Neither the security chief nor Deputy Secretary for Justice Horace Cheung Kwok-kwan, who also met the media after the session with lawmakers, specified a date for the bill to reach the legislature.

Earlier in the week, Tang hit out at critics of the legislation, dismissing a joint statement issued by British-based campaign group Hong Kong Watch and 86 other organisations, and refuting a “false” report by Washington-funded news outlet Radio Free Asia.

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The proposed law would update existing offences and introduce five new types to complement the national security law imposed by Beijing in 2020.

Tang refused to say whether the Radio Free Asia report could be covered by the espionage offence under the new law as violations “cannot be discussed in general terms”, but he said attempts to spread misinformation must be called out.

According to the consultation paper, deliberate publication of “a statement of fact that is false or misleading to the public” upon collusion with an external force and with an intent to engender national security is defined as an act of espionage.

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The security minister said authorities had heard residents’ concerns, most of which related to the proposed offences of seditious intentions, theft of state secrets and foreign interference.

Tang said a person could be charged with the state secret offence only if they intended to endanger national security, and sedition charges could not be brought for criticising the government as long as such remarks were fact-based.

Legislator Michael Tien Puk-sun, who has previously shared with media information about border reopening and rail operations, said he felt assured after attending the exchange session on Wednesday, as he was confident that he would not cross the line in endangering national security for revealing such unannounced details.

The two largest parties in the legislature, the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong and the Federation of Trade Unions, voiced their continued support for the local legislation after the exchange session.