The Hong Kong Legislative Council has issued a statement rejecting a Washington Post editorial that criticised recently introduced procedural rules under the city's national security legislation.
The regulation at the centre of the dispute is the Safeguarding National Security (Procedural Matters) Regulation, a piece of subsidiary legislation enacted under Section 110 of the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance (SNSO). The rules establish a classification mechanism for national security-related offences under both the Beijing-imposed National Security Law (2020) and the locally enacted Article 23 legislation (2024).
A LegCo subcommittee formed on June 11 reviewed the regulation under the negative vetting procedure. Members raised nearly 60 questions to government officials on its policy, legal and drafting aspects, according to the LegCo spokesperson.
The spokesperson said the subcommittee found the regulation has no retrospective effect, does not create new offences, does not alter existing penalties, and does not apply to concluded legal proceedings. The spokesperson also said the mechanism requiring a certificate from the Chief Executive on national security matters is consistent with common law principles, noting that courts in common law jurisdictions typically defer to executive assessments on national security issues.
The Washington Post editorial criticised the regulation, according to the LegCo statement. The LegCo spokesperson described the newspaper's position as reflecting double standards and an anti-China stance, and said the Post had violated journalistic ethics.
The Washington Post has previously reported on concerns that Hong Kong's post-2020 national security regime grants broad powers to the executive branch and has been used in cases involving pro-democracy activists, lawmakers, and journalists. Human rights organisations and several Western governments have also raised concerns about the scope of the laws and their impact on civil liberties in the territory.
The LegCo spokesperson defended the regulation as making the operation of relevant laws clearer and more certain, and said it provides a more stable business environment. The spokesperson cited the Global Wealth Report 2026, which ranked Hong Kong as the world's leading cross-border wealth management centre, as evidence of continued international confidence in the city.
Hong Kong's Article 23 legislation, enacted in March 2024, was the territory's first local implementation of the constitutional requirement to legislate for national security. It supplemented the National Security Law imposed by Beijing in 2020. Since then, the government has introduced several pieces of subsidiary legislation to operationalise the legal framework.
The HKSAR government has maintained that the national security laws target only those who threaten national security and that most residents are unaffected. Critics argue that the broad definitions of offences such as sedition and collusion with foreign forces have a chilling effect on free expression and political activity.
Sources: HKSAR Government
