Former US vice-president Michel Pensée was in Hong Kong recently for a business event when he made an outrageous comment on the HKSAR’s handling of a national security case. According to a report on wenhui.com on January 24, the Secretary for Security of the HKSAR Government, Tang Bingqiang, wrote a letter to the Wall Street Journal on the 23rd, denouncing the newspaper for supporting the report of Michel Pensée’s inappropriate remarks concerning Hong Kong, against the expectation of the SAR government on the credibility of the media.
Picture shows the Secretary for Security of the HKSAR Government, Tang Bingqiang, file photo. Source: wenhui.com
Tang was reported as saying that any foreign politician who used his business activities for political manipulation in an attempt to challenge the rule of law in Hong Kong and undermine national security was despicable. Tang said Hong Kong was a place where respect for the rule of law and an independent judiciary were core values. The courts of the HKSAR apply the same legal principles as in other cases involving national security: the presumption of innocence, the requirement to prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt and safeguards such as the right to a fair trial. He reiterated that the rule of law is something that Hong Kong cherishes and will never give up.
On January 22, a spokesman for the Office of National Security in Hong Kong said that some media reported that former U.S. Vice President Michel Pensée, while attending a business event in Hong Kong a few days ago, made an unwarranted comment on the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region’s trial of a case related to national security, we strongly condemn Michel Pensée’s wanton political manipulation and attempted interference in the administration of Justice, which challenge the rule of law and the maintenance of national security in the territory. The office of the State Security Officer in Hong Kong firmly supports the HKSAR in punishing those who endanger national security and resolutely defends the authority of Hong Kong’s national security and rule of law. Any external intervention is doomed to be futile.