Hong Kong leader John Lee defends crackdown on public rallies in interests of ‘national security’

Hong Kong leader John Lee doubled down on the strict rules imposed on public protests, arguing that they were necessary to uphold national security.

He said on Tuesday that the authorities needed to perform a “balancing act” of upholding national security along with protecting the rights of the participants of the rally.

His statement comes just days after Hong Kong residents held their first “authorised” protest in years under strict police watch on Sunday.

Several dozens of demonstrators marched in one of the first protests since 2020 in Hong Kong, but were required to wear numbered lanyards and barred from wearing face masks by police.

The protests against the proposed land reclamation and a garbage processing project took place in the eastern district of Tseung Kwan O, where the project is slated to be built.

Hinting at the 2019 pro-democracy protests, Mr Lee on Tuesday said that the police had to consider the risk of rallies being "hijacked", reported Hong Kong Free Press.

However, he said the recent protests have been “orderly, safe, and lawful”.

He added that the police commissioner will make the decision whether to issue a letter of no objection for the approval needed for public rallies.

When asked if protests planned for Labour Day in May would be akin to the pre-pandemic days, Mr Lee said: “He (police commissioner) will make the decision based on the nature of the event, number of participants, time, and whether there would be risks."

“When the commissioner of police makes the decision, he will also have to consider Hong Kong’s situation as a whole, including when in 2019, a lot of public events were hijacked to violate national security, public safety, and public order," the chief executive added.

Critics have slammed the strict monitoring of the small protest with reports saying that city authorities sent a seven-page letter of instructions to the organisers before Sunday’s protest.

“We need to have a more free-spirited protest culture,” James Ockenden, 49, who was marching with his three children told Reuters.

“But this is all pre-arranged and numbered and it just destroys the culture and will put people off from coming for sure.”

Public rallies have been rare in Hong Kong since 2020 following the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic and the implementation of the national security law in the wake of the anti-government protests.

Critics have accused mainland China of throttling dissent with the help of the new law that makes arresting protesters unchallenging. Under the law, alleged crimes of secession, subversion, terrorism and collusion with foreign forces are punishable by a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

Hong Kong's first police-approved protest, which was scheduled to take place earlier last month to mark Women’s Day, was reportedly cancelled by the organisers the night before as police claimed unnamed “violent groups” sought to attend the demonstration.