Proposed Subsidiary Legislation Regarding the Classification of National Security Offences in the HKSAR
關於香港特別行政區將刑事罪行分類為國家安全罪行之擬議附屬法例
Introduction
The Hong Kong government has submitted a proposal to the Legislative Council to formalize the mechanism by which criminal acts are classified as national security offences.
香港政府已向立法會提交一份建議，旨在將刑事行為分類為國家安全罪行的機制正式化。
Main Body
The proposed subsidiary legislation, to be enacted under Section 110 of the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance (SNSO), seeks to codify the classification of 'other offences endangering national security under the law of the HKSAR.' This initiative is presented as a measure to enhance procedural efficiency and legal clarity within a complex geopolitical environment. The mechanism centers on the authority of the Chief Executive to issue binding certificates under Article 47 of the Hong Kong National Security Law (HKNSL) and Section 115 of the SNSO. Should such a certificate be issued, the corresponding criminal act is legally deemed an offence endangering national security. Furthermore, any alternative charges arising from the same act would similarly be classified under this designation.
此擬議之附屬法例將根據《維護國家安全條例》(SNSO) 第 110 條制定，旨在將「香港特別行政區法律下其他危害國家安全的罪行」之分類法典化。此舉被視為在複雜的地緣政治環境中，用以提高程序效率與法律清晰度的措施。該機制的核心在於行政長官根據《香港國安法》(HKNSL) 第 47 條及《維護國家安全條例》第 115 條發布具約束力證明書的權限。若發布此類證明書，相應的刑事行為在法律上將被視為危害國家安全的罪行。此外，由同一行為引起的任何替代指控亦將同樣被分類於此定義下。
Regarding the judicial implications, the administration has asserted that these certificates are binding upon the courts, a necessity attributed to the sensitive and confidential nature of national security determinations. While the Secretary for Justice has maintained that the judiciary retains independent authority over the determination of guilt and the provision of fair trials, the classification of the case itself remains a prerogative of the executive. The government has specified that the legislation will be processed via 'negative vetting,' allowing for gazetting prior to legislative scrutiny. Institutional representatives have emphasized that the proposal does not introduce new criminal offences, penalties, or enforcement powers, but rather refines the implementation of existing statutory frameworks.
關於司法影響，政府主張這些證明書對法院具有約束力，並將此必要性歸因於國家安全判定之敏感與機密性質。儘管律政司司長維持司法機關在判定有罪與提供公正審判方面仍保有獨立權限，但案件本身的分類仍屬行政機關的專權。政府已明確表示，該法例將透過「否定程序」處理，允許在立法會審議前先刊gazette。機構代表強調，該建議並未引入新的刑事罪行、刑罰或執法權力，而是完善現有法定框架的執行。
Conclusion
The government intends to finalize the legislative process expeditiously to ensure the continued stability of the HKSAR.
政府擬儘快完成立法程序，以確保香港特別行政區持續穩定。
Vocabulary Learning
The Architecture of 'Administrative Absolute'
To ascend from B2 to C2, one must move beyond simple vocabulary and master Nominalization and Legal-Bureaucratic Collocations. This text is a masterclass in de-personalization—the art of removing the human agent to project an aura of inevitable institutional authority.
⚡ The Phenomenon: The 'Executive Prerogative' Lexis
Notice how the text avoids saying "The government decides." Instead, it employs complex nominal clusters. This is the hallmark of C2 academic and legal writing: transforming actions into entities.
- "The classification of the case itself remains a prerogative of the executive."
- B2 approach: "The executive decides how to classify the case."
- C2 nuance: By turning "decides" into "remains a prerogative," the writer shifts the focus from a choice to an inherent right.
🔍 Precision Engineering: High-Level Collocations
C2 mastery requires the use of 'fixed' professional pairings that signal membership in a scholarly or legal discourse community. Analyze these pairings from the text:
- Codify the classification Not just 'organize', but to arrange laws into a systematic code.
- Negative vetting A highly specialized legislative term. Using such terminology accurately in context demonstrates a 'near-native' grasp of technical registers.
- Statutory frameworks Moving beyond 'laws' or 'rules' to the overarching structure of legislation.
🛠 Linguistic Pivot: The 'Passive-Aggressive' Formalism
Observe the phrase: "...a necessity attributed to the sensitive and confidential nature of national security determinations."
This is a causal reduction. Rather than using a conjunction like "because," the author uses a noun phrase ("a necessity attributed to..."). This removes the subjectivity of the argument and presents the reason as an objective fact.
C2 Strategy: To sound more authoritative, replace "Because X is true, Y happens" with "Y is a consequence/necessity attributed to X."