In response to a landmark ruling that found 14 important political activists guilty of usurpation, two British judges have resigned from Hong Kong‘s best judge, prompting a regional security crackdown on dissent in the economic hub.
In a statement on Thursday, the Hong Kong judiciary said two prominent British judges, Lawrence Collins and Jonathan Sumption, had tendered their resignations from the city’s Court of Final Appeal ( CFA ), where they served as non- permanent judges.
According to Collins,” I have resigned from the Court of Final Appeal because of the political situation in Hong Kong,” but I continue to have full confidence in the courtroom and the people ‘ complete independence,” he was quoted as saying in a statement to the Financial Times.
Sumption confirmed his resignation to Reuters, telling the Associated Press that he would make a speech the following year. Collins did not respond to a Reuters request for comment right away.
Leading international jurists have long been regarded as a testament to the rule of law that underpins Hong Kong’s reputation abroad.
Chief Justice of Hong Kong, Andrew Cheung, said he regretted taking note of the defections.
In a statement released on Friday, Cheung said,” All magistrates and judicial officials will continue to take the administrative oath and monitor justice in full accordance with the law, without fear or favor, self-interest, or deceit.”
Cheung reported that the state’s top prosecutor currently has eight non-permanent courts from another common law jurisdictions, including two judges from other countries who were appointed last year and this May.
The Hong Kong Bar Association stated on Friday that it” firmly believes that their defections will not change our apex court’s ability to discharge its criminal functions.”
It even expressed “every assurance” in the liberation of Hong Kong’s administrative system.
In response to the large pro-democracy protests that were followed by a year-long crackdown on dissent under a China-imposed national security laws in 2020, the number of English scholars who have severed relations to Hong Kong’s highest court has grown.
In a split speech of dread at the defections, Hong Kong’s chief executive, John Lee, said the new laws had helped the city change from” conflict to buy”.
Robert Reed, who left the CFA in 2022, claimed that his tenure would have appeared to support a “government that has abdicated the principles of political freedom and freedom of expression.”
The security law, which punishes crimes like subversion with sentences of up to life in prison, has been used to thwart dissent and freedom, according to Britain, which returned Hong Kong to China in 1997.
Many of the city’s democratic campaigners have been arrested, detained, or forced into exile, civil society groups have been shuttered and liberal media outlets forced to close.
In the landmark subversion trial, which critics claim further undermined the city’s reputation as a global financial hub, 14 pro-democracy activists were found guilty last week and two were cleared.
More than three years after police detained 47 democratic activists in dawn raids on homes across the city, the verdicts in Hong Kong’s largest trial against the democratic opposition were delivered.
The national security law, according to Chinese and Hong Kong authorities, is necessary and has stabilized the country.
The Basic Law, the mini-constitution that guarantees the territory’s freedoms and significant autonomy under Chinese rule, enshrines the presence of foreign judges in Hong Kong.
These include the preservation of Hong Kong’s traditional law practices from the colonial era.
Three British judges still sit as non- permanent overseas judges on the CFA, in addition to those from Canada and Australia, both common law jurisdictions.
