Face mask law not before NPCSC: Tam Yiu-chung

The Hong Kong delegate to the NPCSC says an interpretation is made only after a matter is studied by the Basic Law Committee. Photo: RTHK

The Hong Kong delegate to the National People's Congress Standing Committee (NPCSC), Tam Yiu-chung, said on Monday that there is no move underway to interpret the Basic Law to end a legal tussle over the SAR's anti-mask law.



A law against wearing face masks during mass events was enacted by the Carrie Lam administration in October under the Emergency Regulations Ordinance. But it has been challenged in the courts, effectively leaving the law in limbo.



This had led to some speculation that Beijing might interpret the Basic Law to remove the ambiguities regarding the face mask ban which courts have kept in abeyance after critics over the law filed for judicial reviews over the matter.



But Tam said the emergency ordinance or the anti-mask law are not on the agenda of the committee's six-day meeting that started in Beijing on Monday.



The standing committee member said if issues over an interpretation of the relevant laws were to be discussed in the committee, they would first have to be put before the Basic Law Committee for study.



Speaking to reporters in the capital before the meeting, Tam said there's only one item about the SAR on the committee's agenda, which is to review Hong Kong NPC delegate Thomas Cheung's resignation on Saturday.



Tam said Cheung tendered his resignation for personal reasons, and described it as a responsible move.



He said Wong Kwan-yu, the president of the Hong Kong Federation of Education Workers, is likely to replace Cheung as a local deputy according to the existing replacement mechanism.



Tam also said the fact that President Xi spoke twice about Hong Kong in the past 10 days and met Carrie Lam twice shows that he cares about Hong Kong.



He said Beijing wants Hong Kong to solve its problems and end the violence as soon as possible.



What happened in the city in the past half year had to do with the "One Country, Two Systems" principle, he said. Some people stress the "two systems", while rejecting "one country", Tam added.



He said this has led to things going in the wrong direction regarding the city's high degree of autonomy.