At the Ceremonial Opening of the Legal Year on 12 Jan, several speakers have expressed their views on the recent public outcry on HK affairs. Extracts follow.

Hon Chief Justice Mr Andrew Kwok-nang Li :

Impressive vigilance has been exercised by our citizens over the rule of law. There is no doubt that our citizens have high expectations that the rule of law will continue to be vigorously maintained and that their guaranteed rights and freedoms will continue to be effectively protected. The unequivocal voice of our citizens that the rule of law represents an immutable value of our society must be fully appreciated and understood by everyone in the community: in particular, by those holding and exercising powers of government, whether executive, legislative or judicial.

Secretary for Justice, Ms. Elsie Leung:

My colleagues sometimes have to give advice on, and to explain publicly, highly controversial government initiatives. As a result, they may be perceived to be taking a political position in respect of those initiatives. But that is not the case. The role of lawyers in my department in such cases is as follows:

• Firstly, they may provide the relevant bureau with legal information from other jurisdictions, indicating how the issue is tackled elsewhere.
• Secondly, they advise whether the bureau's proposals are consistent with the Basic Law, particularly in respect of its human rights guarantees.
• Thirdly, they advise whether the proposals are acceptable as a matter of legal policy. This involves vetting the proposals against fundamental principles which underpin the common law system.
• Fourthly, law drafting counsel may need to prepare draft legislation to give effect to the policy proposals.
• And, fifthly, counsel from my department will assist the bureau in explaining the legal effect of the proposals both to the community and to members of the Legislative Council.

The fact that Government Counsel help to promote the proposals does not, of course, mean that these are the only proposals that would be legally acceptable. There may be many ways of dealing with an issue that are constitutional, and consistent with human rights and legal policy. My department's support of the proposals selected by a policy secretary merely reflects a view that those proposals are one such way.

I am emphasizing this point in order that political and legal considerations can be separated as far as possible. When controversial proposals are being debated, members of the public should know whether arguments supporting or rejecting those proposals are legal or political. This is particularly important when lawyers in my department participate in the debate. If the distinction is not made, it may appear that lawyers are constantly disagreeing on fundamental questions of law. That may not promote confidence in our legal system.

As we move forward to tackle new issues of constitutional importance, I will be encouraging my colleagues to discuss the legal parameters of those issues with the Bar Association and the Law Society. By so doing, I hope that we will be able to develop a consensus on those parameters or, if not, at least find some common ground. If that can be achieved, subsequent debates on how the controversial issue should be taken forward can focus, and can be seen to focus, on political rather than legal considerations.

President of the Law Society, Mr. Ip Shing HingˇG

This (note: political reform) is a subject to which even greater attention should be given. But that attention and time has to be well spent in order to ensure that the reforms are well thought out and acceptable to the majority. Reform does not mean just one issue such as how the Chief Executive or members of the Legislature should be selected. It covers a wide ranging variety of issues and it is vital that we can manage to devise some means whereby there is a general consensus within the community. We must make the best use of all our efforts to achieve such important ends and not waste time and energy fighting amongst different factions in our society. At the same time we must maintain our competitiveness and sustainability in order to take on new challenges. We must be bold enough to initiate good and novel ideas for discussion both here in Hong Kong and by the Central Peopleˇ¦s Government. Hong Kong has always been a place full of vitality and there is no reason why we cannot perpetuate and preserve that spirit in our reforms.

Speech by Chief Justice (Link to Government website)

Speech by Secretary for Justice (Link to Government website)

Speech by the Chairman of Hong Kong Bar Association (Link to Hong Kong Bar Association website)

Speech by the President of the Law Society (Link to Hong Kong Law Association website)