The Courts in Shackles: Freedom of Speech in the Era of National Security in Hong Kong
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Celeste Tin Yan Lo
Celeste Tin Yan Lo, PhD in Laws, Solicitor (Hong Kong), Greater Bay Area Lawyer (PRC), is currently working as Postdoctoral Fellow at School of Law of City University of Hong Kong; holder of Bachelor of Social Sciences (Government and Laws, Hong Kong University) and Master of Arts in Law (University of Bristol). Her current research interests include constitutional law and national security law, both in the context of Hong Kong and international law. She is bilingually fluent in English and Chinese and has published extensively in both languages. Her latest major publication includes
The Hong Kong Judicial System (3rd edition).Xiaoshan Zhang, PhD in Laws, Lecturer at Guangdong University of Foreign Studies Law School. Previously a visiting scholar at Pace University Law School and a postdoctoral researcher at City University of Hong Kong Law School. Her main research areas are Chinese Constitution, Hong Kong Basic Law, comparative constitutional law and constitutional theory. She is author of numerous journal articles and single author of
Legal Traditional Rights of Aboriginal People in the New Territories .Guobin ZHU, PhD Professor of Law, School of Law, City University of Hong Kong; Director, Public Law and Human Rights Forum, City University of Hong Kong. BA, MA, LLM (RenminU of China, Beijing), LLM (Hong Kong University), PhD and HDR (
Diplôme d’Habilitation à Diriger des Recherches ) (Aix-Marseille University, France). He is a Titular Member of International Academy of Comparative Law, Council Member of Chinese Association of Constitutional Law, and Chinese Society of Judicial Studies, Executive Council Member of Association of the Hong Kong Basic Law and Macau Basic Law, and Member of International Association of Constitutional Law and French Society of Comparative Legislation. His research interests cover comparative constitutional law, constitutional law of China and Hong Kong, law of human rights in Hong Kong and China, and public administration of China. He has widely published in English, French and Chinese on various topics in the areas relevant to his research. The major recent publications are included inStanford Journal of International Law ,International Journal of Constitutional Law ,Human Rights Quarterly ,Colombia Journal of Asian Law ,Suffolk University Law Review ,International Review of Administrative Sciences ,China: An International Journal ,Asia-Pacific Law Review ,Hong Kong Law Journal ,Chinese Journal of Law , etc. His most recent publications appear in: For more details, please visit:https://www.cityu.edu.hk/slw/about-school/our-people/professor-zhu-guobin 
Abstract
Hong Kong was once dubbed ‘the city of protest’, a seemingly derogatory description that actually highlights the vibrancy and vocality of this small international city. However, as the usually peaceful and orderly protests and demonstrations gradually degenerated into riots, arson, and criminal damage during the Anti-Extradition Protests in 2019, the Central People’s Government perceived a severe national security loophole in Hong Kong. In response, it swiftly imposed the highly controversial Law of the People’s Republic of China on Safeguarding National Security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, in the absence of any sort of meaningful public consultation. International academic discourse often argues that the National Security Law has significantly restricted, if not entirely suffocated, freedom of expression in Hong Kong. This article acknowledges that freedom of expression in Hong Kong is indeed constrained within its social, political, and cultural context; however, it also seeks to explore how the courts in Hong Kong, often regarded as defenders of human rights and freedoms in the region, work to protect freedom of expression from being unduly curtailed under the guise of national security. Motivated by a strong interest in investigating the role of the Judiciary of Hong Kong, this article, after defining the meaning of freedom of speech in Hong Kong, examines several landmark cases in Hong Kong that involve the delicate balance between national security and freedom of expression. The central argument is that despite the restrictions imposed by the Law, the Hong Kong courts, now dancing with shackles, have endeavoured to use their judicial vehicles to safeguard freedom of speech. While the judicial approach adopted by the Hong Kong courts may not be as robust and straightforward as various interested parties in Hong Kong and in the international world would prefer; the strength and scope of protection of freedom of speech in Hong Kong has strengthened since the enactment of Bill of Rights Ordinance domesticated the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and has remained so in the pre-National Security Law era. Although the leeway for free speech has narrowed in the post-National Security Law era, such protection still surpasses that of Hong Kong’s early colonial days before the Bill of Rights Ordinance was enacted and essentially remains consistent with the new constitutional order of Hong Kong. The Hong Kong courts can always be seen as dedicated guardians of freedom of expression within the domestic context and should be trusted as such.
Funding source: Wu Po-sing Hong Kong Basic Law Special Fund
Award Identifier / Grant number: 9239067
About the authors
Celeste Tin Yan Lo, PhD in Laws, Solicitor (Hong Kong), Greater Bay Area Lawyer (PRC), is currently working as Postdoctoral Fellow at School of Law of City University of Hong Kong; holder of Bachelor of Social Sciences (Government and Laws, Hong Kong University) and Master of Arts in Law (University of Bristol). Her current research interests include constitutional law and national security law, both in the context of Hong Kong and international law. She is bilingually fluent in English and Chinese and has published extensively in both languages. Her latest major publication includes The Hong Kong Judicial System (3rd edition).
Xiaoshan Zhang, PhD in Laws, Lecturer at Guangdong University of Foreign Studies Law School. Previously a visiting scholar at Pace University Law School and a postdoctoral researcher at City University of Hong Kong Law School. Her main research areas are Chinese Constitution, Hong Kong Basic Law, comparative constitutional law and constitutional theory. She is author of numerous journal articles and single author of Legal Traditional Rights of Aboriginal People in the New Territories.
Guobin ZHU, PhD Professor of Law, School of Law, City University of Hong Kong; Director, Public Law and Human Rights Forum, City University of Hong Kong. BA, MA, LLM (RenminU of China, Beijing), LLM (Hong Kong University), PhD and HDR (Diplôme d’Habilitation à Diriger des Recherches) (Aix-Marseille University, France). He is a Titular Member of International Academy of Comparative Law, Council Member of Chinese Association of Constitutional Law, and Chinese Society of Judicial Studies, Executive Council Member of Association of the Hong Kong Basic Law and Macau Basic Law, and Member of International Association of Constitutional Law and French Society of Comparative Legislation. His research interests cover comparative constitutional law, constitutional law of China and Hong Kong, law of human rights in Hong Kong and China, and public administration of China. He has widely published in English, French and Chinese on various topics in the areas relevant to his research. The major recent publications are included in Stanford Journal of International Law, International Journal of Constitutional Law, Human Rights Quarterly, Colombia Journal of Asian Law, Suffolk University Law Review, International Review of Administrative Sciences, China: An International Journal, Asia-Pacific Law Review, Hong Kong Law Journal, Chinese Journal of Law, etc. His most recent publications appear in: For more details, please visit: https://www.cityu.edu.hk/slw/about-school/our-people/professor-zhu-guobin
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Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Letters from the Board
- Can a Sunset Clause Derail an Amendment to the U.S. Constitution?
- Article
- The Courts in Shackles: Freedom of Speech in the Era of National Security in Hong Kong
- Notes & Essay
- Execution of Judgments of the European Court of Human Rights: Actors, Substance and Procedure
- Mini Symposium: Cosmopolitanism, State Sovereignty and International Law and Politics
- In Interesting Times
- On Territorial Disputes. Some Iusphilosophical Remarks
- Two Proposals for Universal and Perpetual Peace: A Short Comparison
- Multidimensional Law as One and Many
- I Respond to Critics and Explain My Integrated Multiverses
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Letters from the Board
- Can a Sunset Clause Derail an Amendment to the U.S. Constitution?
- Article
- The Courts in Shackles: Freedom of Speech in the Era of National Security in Hong Kong
- Notes & Essay
- Execution of Judgments of the European Court of Human Rights: Actors, Substance and Procedure
- Mini Symposium: Cosmopolitanism, State Sovereignty and International Law and Politics
- In Interesting Times
- On Territorial Disputes. Some Iusphilosophical Remarks
- Two Proposals for Universal and Perpetual Peace: A Short Comparison
- Multidimensional Law as One and Many
- I Respond to Critics and Explain My Integrated Multiverses
