Carrie Lam: Hong Kong has not become just another Chinese city

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam said the national security law was “absolutely necessary” to ensure Hong Kong’s stability.

In an interview with CNBC on Friday, Lam said: “Looking back, I believe that the enactment and implementation of the National Security Act, as well as subsequent improvements to the electoral system, are absolutely necessary to ensure the continued stability and prosperity of Hong Kong.”

“And if I may just add, stability is very important for Hong Kong to maintain and enhance its status as an international financial center,” Hong Kong’s chief executive told CNBC’s Emily Tan and Martin Song.

Lam also said that the exodus of expatriates and foreigners from Hong Kong in recent months was not due to the recently enacted National Security Law – which some see as a tightening of its grip on the city – but as a result of the strict control of the epidemic and measures that “are making people very impatient.” “

Before the second anniversary of the enactment of the National Security Law, the city is still struggling Increase the departure of foreign talent and international operations, but Lam said it was a temporary picture.

Hong Kong’s resilience is on full display with an increasing number of people traveling to the city since quarantine periods were eased to one week and the ban on travelers from nine countries including the United Kingdom and the United States was lifted on April 1, Lam said.

Daily arrivals at Hong Kong International Airport have multiplied tenfold, to 3,000 per day, compared to 300 when the full set of restrictions were in place before April, according to Lam.

Lam said strict containment strategies for Covid-19 in Hong Kong were necessary to protect Hong Kong’s main travel corridor to the mainland, but denied that it was just a copy of China’s approach to China to stamp out Covid that led to Entire cities like Shanghai have been shut down and economically paralyzed.

“The government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region has a high degree of autonomy in deciding how to address the public health crisis. But the reality is that our people need to travel to the mainland, but at the same time, we need a very strong international connection,” she said.

“That’s why, for the past two and a half years, we’ve been trying to strike a balance that will enable us to achieve both goals.”

In some of her last parting words before she left office to make room for her Hong Kong’s new leader, John Lee, On July 1, Lam said she would ignore the sanctions imposed on her by the United States and other dignitaries in 2020 over her handling of the city’s protests against liberties.

“I think those who are sanctioning other people, in other places, should consider using this tool to achieve their goals,” she said.

“Me and 11 other Hong Kong officials [were] Aggressive and unreasonable punishment by the US government, but it will not frighten us. I have no regrets and no problem with that.”

“I would also like to give this advice to my successor and other high officials: that in order to fulfill our duty of loyalty, we must not be afraid – whether by abuse, by force, by penalties, or by other means.”