Photo taken on June 29, 2021 shows China's national flags and flags of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) on a street in China's Hong Kong. (XINHUA)
The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government will implement numerous measures to safeguard national security in a comprehensive manner, Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor said during her fifth Policy Address on Wednesday.
Lam said there is still a substantial amount of work for the government, including enacting local legislation to implement Basic Law Article 23 in Hong Kong.
HKSAR Chief Executive Carrie Lam said there is still a substantial amount of work for the government, including enacting local legislation to implement Basic Law Article 23 in Hong Kong
“The Secretary for Security is drawing up effective and pragmatic proposals and provisions, and formulating effective publicity programs to prevent those who are opposed to China and attempt to destabilize Hong Kong from taking advantage of the situation to mislead the public with ill intentions,” Lam said.
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She said the government will also step up national security education and emphasize the importance of the rule of law among Hong Kong residents, particularly the youth, through different activities and approaches.
Lam said the six disciplined services and the two auxiliary services have committed to enhance their work in helping young people develop positive thinking.
The government will also address issues on combating fake news and ensuring cyber security, and strengthen counter-terrorism preparedness and response capability.
Improving electoral system
On improving polling arrangements, Lam said the Constitutional & Mainland Affairs Bureau will work closely with the Electoral Affairs Commission to ensure that the upcoming Legislative Council and Chief Executive elections are conducted in a fair, open and honest manner in accordance with the law, fully implementing the principle of “patriots administering Hong Kong”.
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Turning to public education on the Constitution, Basic Law and National Security Law, the Chief Executive noted that the Citizenship & Social Development subject has been introduced to replace the Liberal Studies subject starting from Secondary 4 in the current school year.
To enable teachers to have a better grasp of the issues, Lam said she has proposed to give a class to teachers who are interested.
Strengthening public education
“More channels should be provided for public education work. Radio Television Hong Kong, as a public service broadcaster, should play an active role in promoting the Constitution and the Basic Law, so as to fulfill its public purposes and mission under the Charter of RTHK, which include promoting public understanding of the implementation of ‘one country, two systems’ in Hong Kong, as well as engendering a sense of citizenship and national identity,” she said.
“In this regard, I have expressly requested the Director of Broadcasting to follow up,” Lam added.
She also highlighted the importance of improving the executive-legislative relationship so that LegCo can better perform its role in conveying public opinions.
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The government will announce 40 legislative proposals for early discussion at the community level, Lam said.
“Many of these proposals have taken on board the views raised by incumbent members in the past, including introducing mandatory reporting for child abuse prevention, streamlining the statutory procedures for land development, and strengthening regulation over the service quality of residential care homes for the elderly and people with disabilities,” she said.
Lam added that all secretaries of departments and directors of bureaus will enhance communication with lawmakers to achieve good administration and governance.