Power of national security law obvious to all: security chief of HKSAR gov't

HONG KONG -- Chris Tang Ping-keung, secretary for security of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government, said on Tuesday that the power of the national security law in Hong Kong is obvious to all, which has led to a sharp drop in violence.

Tang said in his blog that the country's care and support has always been the strongest backing to ensure Hong Kong's security. So far more than 130 people have been arrested on suspicion of breaching the national security law and related crimes, and more than half of them have been prosecuted.

Troublemakers endangering national security have been largely restrained and order in Hong Kong has been restored, he said.

Tang pointed out that through the enforcement of the national security law and the improvement of the HKSAR's electoral system, the central government aimed to ensure the steady and sustained implementation of "one country, two systems" and the long-term stability of the HKSAR.

He said that the security bureau will unswervingly cooperate with the HKSAR government to fulfil the requirements for safeguarding national security in the outline of the 14th Five-Year Plan.

He said that the security bureau will devote itself to improving Hong Kong's customs clearance capacity and facilitation level of cross-border ports, to help promote the efficient and convenient flow of people and goods in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

The security bureau will also explore and implement the entry facilitation policy to attract more talents from all over the world, including those from other cities in the Greater Bay Area to come to Hong Kong, he said.

Tang also said that cracking down on cross-border crimes has always been the common goal of law enforcement officials in Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao. The security bureau and its disciplined services, together with relevant units in other cities in the Greater Bay Area, will jointly safeguard the social security and stability in the region.

Meanwhile, the security bureau will stand ready to safeguard the security of the upcoming three important elections in Hong Kong and celebration activities of the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to the motherland next year, he said.