LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ─ 6 June 2013 13279 OFFICIAL RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Thursday, 6 June 2013 The Council continued to meet at half-past Two o'clock MEMBERS PRESENT: THE PRESIDENT THE HONOURABLE JASPER TSANG YOK-SING, G.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE ALBERT HO CHUN-YAN THE HONOURABLE LEE CHEUK-YAN THE HONOURABLE JAMES TO KUN-SUN THE HONOURABLE CHAN KAM-LAM, S.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE EMILY LAU WAI-HING, J.P. THE HONOURABLE TAM YIU-CHUNG, G.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE ABRAHAM SHEK LAI-HIM, S.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE TOMMY CHEUNG YU-YAN, S.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE FREDERICK FUNG KIN-KEE, S.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE VINCENT FANG KANG, S.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE WONG KWOK-HING, M.H. THE HONOURABLE JEFFREY LAM KIN-FUNG, G.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE ANDREW LEUNG KWAN-YUEN, G.B.S., J.P. 13280 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ─ 6 June 2013 THE HONOURABLE WONG TING-KWONG, S.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE RONNY TONG KA-WAH, S.C. THE HONOURABLE CYD HO SAU-LAN THE HONOURABLE STARRY LEE WAI-KING, J.P. THE HONOURABLE CHAN HAK-KAN, J.P. THE HONOURABLE CHAN KIN-POR, B.B.S., J.P. DR THE HONOURABLE PRISCILLA LEUNG MEI-FUN, J.P. THE HONOURABLE CHEUNG KWOK-CHE THE HONOURABLE WONG KWOK-KIN, B.B.S. THE HONOURABLE IP KWOK-HIM, G.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE MRS REGINA IP LAU SUK-YEE, G.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE PAUL TSE WAI-CHUN, J.P. THE HONOURABLE ALAN LEONG KAH-KIT, S.C. THE HONOURABLE LEUNG KWOK-HUNG THE HONOURABLE WONG YUK-MAN THE HONOURABLE CLAUDIA MO THE HONOURABLE JAMES TIEN PEI-CHUN, G.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE NG LEUNG-SING, S.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE STEVEN HO CHUN-YIN THE HONOURABLE WU CHI-WAI, M.H. THE HONOURABLE YIU SI-WING LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ─ 6 June 2013 13281 THE HONOURABLE GARY FAN KWOK-WAI THE HONOURABLE MA FUNG-KWOK, S.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE CHARLES PETER MOK THE HONOURABLE CHAN CHI-CHUEN THE HONOURABLE CHAN YUEN-HAN, S.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE LEUNG CHE-CHEUNG, B.B.S., M.H., J.P. THE HONOURABLE KENNETH LEUNG THE HONOURABLE ALICE MAK MEI-KUEN, J.P. THE HONOURABLE KWOK WAI-KEUNG THE HONOURABLE DENNIS KWOK THE HONOURABLE CHRISTOPHER CHEUNG WAH-FUNG, J.P. DR THE HONOURABLE FERNANDO CHEUNG CHIU-HUNG THE HONOURABLE SIN CHUNG-KAI, S.B.S., J.P. DR THE HONOURABLE HELENA WONG PIK-WAN DR THE HONOURABLE ELIZABETH QUAT, J.P. THE HONOURABLE MARTIN LIAO CHEUNG-KONG, J.P. THE HONOURABLE POON SIU-PING, B.B.S., M.H. THE HONOURABLE TANG KA-PIU DR THE HONOURABLE CHIANG LAI-WAN, J.P. 13282 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ─ 6 June 2013 IR DR THE HONOURABLE LO WAI-KWOK, B.B.S., M.H., J.P. THE HONOURABLE CHUNG KWOK-PAN THE HONOURABLE CHRISTOPHER CHUNG SHU-KUN, B.B.S., M.H., J.P. THE HONOURABLE TONY TSE WAI-CHUEN MEMBERS ABSENT: THE HONOURABLE LEUNG YIU-CHUNG DR THE HONOURABLE LAU WONG-FAT, G.B.M., G.B.S., J.P. DR THE HONOURABLE JOSEPH LEE KOK-LONG, S.B.S., J.P. DR THE HONOURABLE LAM TAI-FAI, S.B.S., J.P. DR THE HONOURABLE LEUNG KA-LAU THE HONOURABLE ALBERT CHAN WAI-YIP THE HONOURABLE MICHAEL TIEN PUK-SUN, B.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE FRANKIE YICK CHI-MING THE HONOURABLE CHAN HAN-PAN DR THE HONOURABLE KENNETH CHAN KA-LOK DR THE HONOURABLE KWOK KA-KI THE HONOURABLE IP KIN-YUEN PUBLIC OFFICER ATTENDING: MR LAU KONG-WAH, J.P. SECRETARY FOR CONSTITUTIONAL AND MAINLAND AFFAIRS LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ─ 6 June 2013 13283 CLERKS IN ATTENDANCE: MR ANDY LAU KWOK-CHEONG, ASSISTANT SECRETARY GENERAL MISS ODELIA LEUNG HING-YEE, ASSISTANT SECRETARY GENERAL 13284 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ─ 6 June 2013 MEMBERS' MOTIONS PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Third Members' motion: Safeguarding freedom of information, of the press and of the Internet. Members who wish to speak in the motion debate will please press the "Request to speak" button. I will now call upon Mr Charles Peter MOK to speak and move the motion. SAFEGUARDING FREEDOM OF INFORMATION, OF THE PRESS AND OF THE INTERNET MR CHARLES PETER MOK (in Cantonese): President, I move that the motion, as set out on the Agenda, be passed. The motion proposed by me today is very simple in terms of content. I am sure Members will all agree that the freedom of information and freedom of the press are the edges to which our success can be ascribed. They are very important to our economic and social development and they have become part of our core values. During the past 20 years, the development of the Internet has boosted the development of technology and new economy globally. The freedom of the Internet has become a very important part in our discussion on the freedom of information today. President, harmony in Hong Kong is like 7 million voices for the 7 million people there. It is never like the picture of he xie (河 蟹) which I have brought here today. When harmony becomes he xie, it is because the term "harmony" has become a sensitive word and it cannot be spoken or written. You have to say he xie, but there are times that you may not be able to get away with it. How inhumane is this distortion of human nature. When the term he xie appears, it tells us that the problem is already there and it is here with us. Therefore, the freedom of information, of the press and of the Internet is very important to us. However, we can see that these kinds of freedom are constantly subjected to impacts. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ─ 6 June 2013 13285 The motion proposed by me urges the Government to take concrete actions to safeguard freedom of information, freedom of the press and of the Internet. I would like to thank Honourable colleagues who have proposed amendments to the motion first of all. The freedom of speech in Hong Kong is affirmed by provisions like Article 19 of the United Nations International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and it is protected by the Hong Kong Bill of Rights Ordinance (Cap. 383) and in particular section 16. After the reunification, the freedom of speech is elevated into a constitutional right by virtue of Articles 27, 39, and so on, of the Basic Law. Hong Kong society has all along been supported by the three pillars of the rule of law, clean government and the free flow of information. The Hong Kong Government is most clear about this. If only we browse the website of InvestHK, we can find what is said there on the advantages of Hong Kong which are its being international, transparent and efficient. It also says that Hong Kong is one of the world's most open and corruption-free economies; it has an independent Judiciary and the rule of law; and that there is a free flow of information. Unfortunately, what we have seen recently is that some problems have emerged with respect to these three points. On this occasion I would like to talk about the topic of freedom of information. I recall that when we discussed the motion on the competitiveness of Hong Kong, I stressed that Hong Kong owed its success not to its integration with the Mainland but to its differences from the Mainland cities. And the three pillars which I have mentioned earlier are exactly Hong Kong's differences with the Mainland. But what worries us is that these three pillars are now being severely challenged. We cannot tell the people outside Hong Kong that we are as good as what InvestHK says, but turn a blind eye to the threats to our basic values and erosions of our fundamental edges. President, I wish to talk about the freedom of information first. The freedom of information should include the freedom of expression and the freedom of speech, as well as the freedom to obtain information, and that there is a free flow of information free from unreasonable surveillance, censorship or filtering. 13286 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ─ 6 June 2013 Although I have not proposed directly in my motion that an access to information law or Archives Law should be enacted, I am pleased to see that some Honourable colleagues have mentioned these in their amendments. I give them my full support. Yesterday I raised a written question on the existing Code on Access to Information. I asked about certain government departments refusing to provide information for certain grounds. Today, Secretary TAM is not in attendance but the Deputy Secretary is here. Secretary TAM replied at that time that the Bureau did not collect any information in this respect concerning the departments. May I ask what does the Government mean when it does not provide information when requested or it will say that the relevant information is not collected? President, yesterday I hosted a press conference on this motion. I invited Members who have proposed amendments, the Hong Kong Journalists Association, scholars, and friends from the news media, the Internet and the IT sector. As we briefed them on the motion, reporters and scholars all said that when they asked the Government for information, they had been given roundabout replies. Also, they said that they all thought that the information concerned was not sensitive at all. Some scholars told us that while there was public expectation that more policy studies should be undertaken, the Government was unwilling to provide the information.