The government will ask China's top legislative body to interpret the city’s national security law on whether foreign lawyers can be involved in national security cases, Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu said on Monday. This came after the Court of Final Appeal dismissed an appeal by the Justice Department to overturn an earlier court decision allowing a British lawyer to defend media tycoon Jimmy Lai in his upcoming national security trial. Under the existing system, the government is powerless to prevent overseas lawyers from being subject to “dubious interference” or ensure they keep state secrets, Lee added. The Standing Committee has offered five interpretations of Hong Kong’s Basic Law -- its mini constitution -- since the UK handed the city back in 1997. The ruling effectively blocked two elected “localists” from taking their seats in the Hong Kong’s legislature.

Source: The Standard November 29, 2022 04:22 UTC