Carrie Lam has the opportunity to defend human rights in Hong Kong, but she must stand up to the Chinese government

As we mark 20 years of Chinese rule in Hong Kong, the city’s cherished freedom of expression looks to be in jeopardy under the incoming chief executive

Since the 2014 pro-democracy Umbrella Movement, Beijing seems more intent on cracking down on Hong Kong freedoms (Reuters)

Hong Kong people are being whisked away to detention in mainland China, and this is apparently of no concern to Carrie Lam, who starts her five-year term in charge of the city this week.

Lam’s remarks in a television interview that the vanishing of booksellers from Hong Kong in 2015 and their subsequent detention by mainland Chinese security officials is a “matter for the mainland authorities” is chilling for all those who value the city’s freedoms and rule of law.

The ability of Hong Kong’s new chief executive to stand up to Beijing will be tested this week when President Xi Jinping visits the city to mark the 20th anniversary of its handover to China.

There are reports the city’s cherished freedom of expression will be further curtailed during his visit, with banners criticising the Chinese government set to be removed by police to avoid causing “embarrassment”.

If true, it is the city’s political leaders who are the embarrassment if they are willing to violate the human rights of Hong Kong residents just to appease Beijing.

This is not scaremongering by liberals pushing a Western agenda as Beijing loyalists often argue. The blueprint was set out by China’s third-in-command, Zhang Dejiang, when he delivered a speech on Hong Kong’s handover on 27 May. He urged the city’s leaders to “steadfastly implement the constitutional obligation of national security under the Basic Law”, the city’s mini-constitution.

This would require Hong Kong to enact laws to prohibit acts such as “subversion against the Central People’s Government”, “theft of state secrets” and the establishment of “ties with foreign political organisations or bodies” by political organisations or bodies of Hong Kong, under Article 23 of the Basic Law.

Look across the border to the mainland and you will see the disturbing repercussions of an agenda that distorts national security concerns. Under the pretext of protecting national security, President Xi has introduced a series of laws in China that restrict human rights. The definition of “national security” in these laws is virtually limitless, covering “the welfare of the people, sustainable economic and social development, and other major national interests”.

It is carte blanche for the government to go after those that legitimately scrutinise abuses of power or simply voice differing opinions. Government targets such as human rights defenders, activists and dissidents are frequently detained and persecuted, many on “national security” charges, such as “inciting subversion of state power” and “leaking state secrets”.

The last time an Article 23 proposal was considered in Hong Kong in 2003, half a million people came out on the streets to protest and the idea was put aside.

But since the 2014 pro-democracy “Umbrella Movement”, which brought a new wave of young activists to the fore, Beijing seems intent on pushing through these heavy-handed national security reforms. It appears Carrie Lam’s remit is to deliver on this, although she recognised during her election campaign that the issue is highly controversial, so that the government had to act cautiously to try and create the “right social conditions for legislation”.

Another cornerstone of Hong Kong, the independence of courts and judges, is also increasingly under attack. The city’s judiciary has experienced intensifying pressure to give up its impartiality and independence in “sensitive” cases and instead bend to Beijing’s political requirements.

In February, after the sentencing of the seven police officers who assaulted democracy activist Ken Tsang during the 2014 Umbrella Movement protests, state mouthpieces initiated a well-orchestrated campaign attacking the impartiality of Hong Kong’s judicial system.

Despite political pressure and even threats of physical attacks, judges in Hong Kong, overall, continue to be a strong line of defence in protecting individuals from abuses of power and safeguarding rights guaranteed in the Basic Law.

President Xi claims to promote “rule of law”, but judicial independence is glaringly absent in mainland China. The Chinese government seems intent to replicate such government control on courts in Hong Kong. In his handover speech, Zhang Dejiang announced Beijing’s determination to tackle problems facing Hong Kong, including the “smearing” efforts of “internal and external forces” to discredit the central government and Hong Kong government, through “powerful legal weapons”.

These legal weapons appear to be an extension of using vague charges of public disorder and unlawful assembly to intimidate people who dare challenge the authorities. Such an approach may use legal tools, but it is not lawful under international law.

Despite the wrecking ball the Chinese government wants to take to Hong Kong’s freedoms, many local groups are prepared to defend these values even if their government won’t.

Carrie Lam has an opportunity to defend human rights and resist the expansion of Beijing’s repressive policies to Hong Kong. However, if she and other political leaders acquiesce to Beijing, there are millions of Hong Kong people who are prepared to stand up for their rights.

Mabel Au is the director of Amnesty International Hong Kong