Philip Hammond to discuss rule of law, ‘one country, two systems’ and political reform in meetings with Chief Executive CY Leung and Chief Justice Geoffrey Ma
GARY.CHEUNG@SCMP.COM
UPDATED : Friday, 08 April, 2016, 3:03pm
Philip Hammond’s Hong Kong stop is the first visit by a British foreign secretary in more than five years. Photo: AP
British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond has highlighted concerns raised over the disappearance of five Hong Kong booksellers and emphasised the rule of law as the cornerstone of “one country, two systems”.
Hammond arrived in the city on Friday, the first visit by a foreign secretary in more than five years. He will meet with Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying and Chief Justice Geoffrey Ma Tao-li.
Hong Kong is the first stop of the Hammond’s East Asia tour, which includes the G7 Foreign Ministers’ meeting in Japan.
During his meeting with Leung, Hammond will affirm the UK’s commitment as co-signatory to the Sino-British Joint Declaration and support for Hong Kong’s high degree of autonomy, rights and freedoms.
He will also underline the importance of “one country, two systems” and of restarting progress on political reform.
In a separate meeting with the chief justice, Hammond will emphasise the rule of law as the cornerstone of “one country, two systems”.
“Rule of law is the cornerstone of an open and fair society. Hong Kong’s success is underpinned by its independent judiciary and respect for rights and freedoms,” Hammond said in a statement.
“Although the ‘one country, two systems’ model is generally working well in Hong Kong, concerns have been raised over the recent booksellers’ case,” he added.
In a six-monthly report on Hong Kong released in February, Britain said China’s actions over the “involuntary” removal of Lee Po to the mainland “constitutes a serious breach of the Sino-British Joint Declaration on Hong Kong”.
The British government demanded from China’s leadership the “immediate return” of the Lee to his hometown
In the report, the British government expressed “serious concern” over the level of rights and freedoms enjoyed by Hongkongers, claiming they had come under “unprecedented pressure”.
Britain became the first government involved in Lee’s case to suggest that Chinese agents were behind his disappearance in December.
Lee, a British citizen, is one of the owners of publishing house Mighty Current, which runs Causeway Bay Books, a store specialising in publications detailing power struggles and scandals in the Communist Party.
Lee and four business associates who went missing last October later resurfaced on the mainland, either becoming subjects of unspecified investigations or assisting in them.
“Our current information indicates that Mr Lee was involuntarily removed to the mainland without any due process under Hong Kong SAR law,” the British report noted.
“We have called, in our contacts with the Chinese government at the highest level, for Mr Lee’s immediate return to Hong Kong.”
Lee’s case, it added, constituted a “serious breach of the Sino-British Joint Declaration on Hong Kong” and “undermines the principle of ‘one country, two systems’”.
Lee returned quietly to the city on March 24 and asked local police to end their investigation into his missing-person case. He had earlier mentioned plans to give up his British citizenship.
http://m.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1934652/british-foreign-secretary-highlights-concerns-over
