Economic growth, national security are Hong Kong government priorities for 2024, top officials say
Hong Kong Free Press
Hong Kong’s leader John Lee has said that the government’s key goals for 2024 will be to boost the economy and improve people’s lives, as the city’s number two official Eric Chan said that safeguarding national security would “continue to be a priority” in the new year.
In a new year’s greeting video posted on social media, Chief Executive Lee said in Cantonese that in 2023 his administration had successfully brought the city out of the pandemic and implemented policies laid out in his 2022 Policy Address.
He added that, if all sectors worked together, Hong Kong would be “better than ever, and become more dazzling on the international stage” in the year ahead.
He said that the government aimed to revitalise the economy by promoting hospitality and organising diverse activities. He also said that the city would leverage its connectivity with China and the world to facilitate exchanges between international and Chinese businesses.
“[Hong Kong] will continue to be a ‘super connector’ and ‘super value-adder,’” Lee said, a term that had been used in the official narrative that the city would maintain its status as a regional financial hub.
He also said that residents’ livelihood issues would be tackled in 2024, adding that the new District Council had begun to serve on Monday after an electoral overhaul ensured only “patriots” could govern.
A recent survey conducted by the the city’s oldest business group, the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce (HKGCC) found that over 60 per cent enterprises did not expect their income to grow in 2024. Among them, 20 per cent expected a decrease in income compared to the previous 12 months.
Patrick Yeung, the CEO of the HKGCC, said the city’s slow recovery after lifting all Covid-related restrictions in 2023 should be attributed to the tense geopolitical situation, high interest rates and weak demand globally.
The HKGCC also predicted that the Hong Kong’s gross domestic product growth would slow to 2.9 per cent this year, down from the chamber’s estimated growth of 3.3 per cent in 2023.
National Security
In a separate social media post, Chief Secretary Eric Chan, Hong Kong’s number two official, said that safeguarding national security would continue to be a “top mission” for authorities.
Chan said the legislation of the city’s own security law, known locally as Article 23, would be completed in 2024, adding that the legislation would work in tandem with the Beijing-imposed national security law to curb and punish activities that endanger national security.
Article 23 of the city’s mini-constitution, the Basic Law, stipulates that Hong Kong shall enact its own laws to prohibit seven types of offences, including treason, sedition, and theft of state secrets.
It stands alone from Beijing’s national security law, which was passed in June 2020 after the massive protests and unrest triggered by a controversial extradition amendment in 2019. The security law criminalises secession, subversion, foreign collusion and terrorism.
See also: What is Article 23? Hong Kong’s homegrown security law finds itself back in the spotlight
The government has said that a local security law was needed to plug “gaps” in the Beijing-imposed legislation, but authorities have been unclear about whether opposition to Article 23 would violate the existing security law, amid concerns that civil liberties would be impacted.
Chan added that a new Working Group on Patriotic Education – announced in Lee’s second policy address last October – would coordinate patriotic education across sectors.
The new group, under the Constitution and Basic Law Promotion Steering Committee chaired by Chan, will ensure young people’s “correct understanding” of national identity and “One Country, Two Systems,” the city’s governing framework, he said.
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