On 4 December 2018, 4 UK Parliamentarians raised Hong Kong in the House of Commons. The Minister for Asia and the Pacific Mark Field said that the rule of law and the independence of the judiciary was the ‘foundation’ for Hong Kong’s continued success and prosperity. He criticised the visa denial to Victor Mallet and said that the banning of the Hong Kong National Party ‘breaches the spirit of ‘One-Country, two-systems’.

The discussion around the rule of law in Hong Kong and the Sino-British Joint Declaration was initiated by Steve Double, Conservative MP for St Austell and Newquay. Shadow Minister for Asia, Labour MP Helen Goodman, Labour MP Catherine West, and the Chair of the Conservative Party Human Rights Commission Fiona Bruce MP, all raised concerns.

Steve Double raised the importance of the rule of law for Hong Kong’s prosperity. Government Minister Mark Field said:

“The rule of law and the independence of the judiciary are the foundations of Hong Kong’s continued success and prosperity… I reassure my hon. Friend that we take very seriously our long-standing and ongoing duty to uphold the joint declaration.”

Labour Shadow Minister Helen Goodman MP strongly criticised the banning of the Hong Kong National Party.

She asked what the government was doing in view of the fact that “the banning of a pro-independence party in September marks a disturbing new phase in the erosion of democratic rights and freedoms by China. It is a clear breach of the spirit of the 1984 declaration…”

In response, Government Minister Mark Field said that the UK were taking extensive action in response to breaches of the Joint Declaration.

He said: “May I reassure the hon. Lady that we have done rather a lot? We do not support Hong Kong independence as we feel that would be a clear breach of “one country, two systems”. Nevertheless, as she rightly says, the right to stand for election, and the rights to free speech and to freedom of association are absolutely enshrined in the Basic Law. We are also concerned that, if not the letter, then certainly the spirit of “one country, two systems” is being breached by this matter. We have issued a statement and we will continue to apply pressure through diplomatic means; we will do so on an ongoing basis. I share many of her concerns, but she should not believe that there is not a lot of work going on, both from our consular general there and from London on this matter.”

Catherine West MP raised the Visa denial of Benedict Rogers and Victor Mallet. Mark Field responded by raising significant concerns about Victor Mallet.

He said: “I reassure my hon. Friend that we take very seriously our long-standing and ongoing duty to uphold the joint declaration. We have raised publicly our concerns about the decision, for example, not to renew the visa of Victor Mallet, of the Financial Times, and the subsequent denial of his re-entry into Hong Kong, as well as other developments. These call into question Hong Kong’s high degree of autonomy. We have also made it clear in private to the Chinese and Hong Kong Governments that it is vital that Hong Kong’s rights, freedoms and high degree of autonomy, which are set out in the joint declaration, are fully respected.”

Finally, Fiona Bruce MP raised the trial of Benny Tai and 8 other Occupy Movement leaders.

She said: “Does the Minister share concerns about the trial that began on 19 November of nine leaders of the pro-democracy Hong Kong umbrella movement on such vague charges as “incitement to incite” public nuisance, and about the implications of such charges for freedom of speech and the rule of law in Hong Kong? Will Ministers raise such concerns with the Government there at the earliest opportunity?”

Mark Field responded by saying: “I thank my hon. Friend for her tenacious work in this regard. The trials are a matter for the Hong Kong courts. I met Roberto Ribeiro, the deputy chief justice, and the head of the Hong Kong Bar Association when I was there in November. I have every confidence in the continued independence of the Hong Kong judiciary, which remains in high international esteem. But I hope that the incidents to which she refers will not discourage either lawful protests or the young from engaging in politics in Hong Kong.”



Full video can be found at www.facebook.com/hongkongwatch1

