Beijing/Hong Kong: China on Wednesday opened its first office in Hong Kong to implement the controversial national security law, a move which is expected to impact the hundreds of foreign firms which are concerned over the vague language used in the legislation and its implications.
The office for Safeguarding National Security of the Central People’s Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) was inaugurated on Wednesday, establishing for the first time the presence of China’s security establishment in the former British colony after it came under the control of Beijing in 1997.
The new national security office places mainland Chinese agents in the heart of the territory for the first time.
The office is one element of a sweeping new law which outlaws criticism of China’s government, the BBC reported. Hong Kong was, until the law was passed, only the part of China and not subject to such policies.
The law has caused alarm in Hong Kong, a global business hub, but officials said it will restore stability after the violent pro-democracy protests.
Opening the office — along with Hong Kong’s pro-China Chief Executive Carrie Lam — Luo Huining, China’s newly appointed deputy director for the city said that the headquarters for safeguarding the national security is “the envoy of Hong Kong’s security” and “the gatekeeper of national security.”
The office will analyse and appraise the national security situation in the HKSAR and provide comments and suggestions for major strategies and policies, as per the law.
It shall also collect and analyse intelligence information concerning national security and deal with criminal cases concerning national security in accordance with the law, state-run CGTN TV reported.
China imposed the law on Hong Kong a week ago to take full control of the former British colony which since last year was in turmoil with massive protests opposing Beijing’s growing controls on the city. (PTI)
