Hong Kong must be vigilant, never ‘forget pain’ despite stability: Beijing envoy

Hong Kong must maintain a high level of security at all times as it cannot afford to forget past pain and “act as a kind person with wishful thinking”, even in times of social stability, Beijing’s top envoy to the financial hub has said.

Zheng Yanxiong, director of the central government’s liaison office, made the call on Wednesday at a seminar to mark the first national Constitution Day since the city enacted its domestic national security law.

He said Hong Kong had undergone many positive changes on the economic and social fronts in the past year, such as reclaiming the crown as the world’s freest economy in the Fraser Institute’s 2024 rankings, despite facing many “unfavourable factors” amid ongoing geopolitical turmoil.

But he warned the city must “grasp the dialectical relationship between security and development” as it was still in a “critical period” of transition from chaos to a new era of order and prosperity, a reference to the 2019 anti-government protests that led to the enactment of Beijing-decreed national security law in 2020.

“We can never forget the pain after healing the scars, nor can we act as a kind person with wishful thinking. At all times and under all circumstances, we must adhere to the spirit of the rule of law, maintain a high level of safety and promote high-quality development with an innovative spirit,” Zheng said.

“Only by resolutely upholding the constitutional order of [Hong Kong] established in the constitution and the Basic Law, resolutely safeguarding national security and promoting the administration of Hong Kong according to law can the city have sufficient confidence in its reforms and innovation.”

Hong Kong implemented the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance in March this year, fulfilling its obligation under Article 23 of the Basic Law, the city’s mini-constitution.