Zhang Xiaoming, Deputy Director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office (HKMAO) said, according to the South China Morning Post (June 8) that the new national security law for Hong Kong is meant to strengthen, not undermine, the “one country, two systems” principle and will ensure the freedoms granted to the city can be extended beyond 2047. He elaborated that contrary to alarmist warnings of the opposition and foreign powers eager to demonise the central government, the new legislation would target “very few” people committing the four crimes of secession, subversion, terrorism and foreign intervention. The vast majority of Hong Kong people, meanwhile, would have peace and order restored in the city, and their rights and freedoms better protected from negative elements, such as those behind violent protests, those demanding independence and others who colluded with foreign powers.
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