Knowledge (XXG)

Hong Kong Bill of Rights Ordinance

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II of the present Ordinance reproduces verbatim the substantive rights provisions of the ICCPR, subject to minor changes reflecting the fact that Hong Kong is not a sovereign state. Part III of the HKBORO reproduces, albeit in slightly different language, the reservations entered by the United Kingdom in respect of Hong Kong.
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that the ICCPR as applied to Hong Kong shall remain in force after the changeover. The expression 'as applied to Hong Kong' was understood to include the substantive rights provisions of the ICCPR subject to the reservations entered by the United Kingdom upon her ratification of the same. Hence, Part
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decided to draft a Bill of Rights for Hong Kong to incorporate into domestic law relevant rights, as applied in Hong Kong. The Bill of Rights met strong opposition from the Chinese Government as soon as it was proposed. The Chinese Government regarded the Bill of Rights as unnecessary, detrimental to
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With the advent of HKBORO, the courts of Hong Kong embarked upon an era of meaningful constitutional review. In early days the Courts were concerned with whether pre-8 June 1991 legislation had been repealed by the HKBORO for inconsistency. The period from 8 June 1991 to 1 July 1997 was described as
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The Chinese Government objected to the entrenched status of the HKBORO; otherwise this would be a departure from the Basic Law since no legislation in Hong Kong prior to the change of sovereignty in 1997 enjoyed a higher status than other legislation. As such, Sections 2(3), 3 and 4 were not adopted
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which stipulated that no law shall be made after 8 June 1991 that "restricts the rights and freedoms enjoyed in Hong Kong in a manner which is inconsistent with the ICCPR as applied to Hong Kong." Any statutory provision which is inconsistent with the Bill of Rights was repealed on 8 June 1991, upon
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The objection of the Chinese Government had a profound impact on both the form and the content of the Bill of Rights. In terms of its content, in order to ensure the consistency of the Bill of Rights with the Basic Law, it was decided that, instead of drafting a bill which was tailor-made for Hong
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challenged that the discretion of the Commissioner of Police to object to processions for the purpose of public order was too wide and contravened art. 17 of the HKBORO, and relevant provisions in the ICCPR and the Basic Law. The Court of Final Appeal further developed the
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in the summer of 1989, the Hong Kong Bill of Rights Ordinance was intended to restore the shattered confidence of the people of Hong Kong in their future. Amidst growing urges in society on giving effect to rights in the ICCPR in the domestic law of Hong Kong, the
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The Hong Kong Bill of Rights Ordinance… in fact provides for the incorporation of the provisions of the ICCPR into the laws of Hong Kong…. by virtue of art 39(2) of the Basic Law, a restriction on either freedom cannot contravene the provisions of the
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described the enactment of the Ordinance as “the first constitutional revolution” in Hong Kong. Before its enactment, human rights protection was exclusively reliant on judge-made common law principles; courts were not empowered to conduct
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he restriction must be rationally connected with one or more of the legitimate purposes; and (2) the means used to impair the right of peaceful assembly must be no more than is necessary to accomplish the legitimate purpose in
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An Ordinance to provide for the incorporation into the law of Hong Kong of provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights as applied to Hong Kong; and for ancillary and connected matters.
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one during which the courts of Hong Kong produced a valuable if not very large body of human rights jurisprudence and gained a useful six years of pre-handover experience of meaningful constitutional review.
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A right may be provided for (i) in both the Basic Law and the [Hong Kong Bill of Rights Ordinance (Bill); or (ii) only in the Basic Law and not in the Bill; or (iii) only in the Bill but not in the Basic
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to give the ICCPR an “entrenched status” in Hong Kong’s constitutional documents. After its enactment, any legislation which encroach the HKBORO would be deemed unconstitutional.
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The HKBORO in some circumstances also imposes an obligation for positive actions to manifest rights provided in the Ordinance through enacting laws and adopting social policies.
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Section 4 provides that all legislations enacted on or after the commencement date shall be construed in such way to be consistent with the ICCPR as applied in Hong Kong.
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Even so, the entrenched status of the ICCPR (and subsequently the HKBORO) in the constitutional framework of Hong Kong continue with the effect of article 39 of the
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Any restrictions on rights and freedoms stipulated the ICCPR (and subsequently the HKBORO) must be prescribed by law and justified, according to Chief Justice
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the commencement of the HKBORO. This led to the amendment of some Hong Kong laws so as to bring them in conformity with the HKBORO, for example the
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on 25 July 1990, passed by the Legislative Council in June 1991 and was enacted on 8 June 1991. Corresponding amendments were made to the
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The enactment of HKBORO in 1991 provided the foundation for constitutional guarantees of rights and freedom in Hong Kong.
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Article 39 of the Basic Law creates a part of the post-handover tripartite framework on human rights protection, where:
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enacted the Interception of Communications and Surveillance Ordinance (Cap. 589) in 2006, following the judgment in
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Before 1997, the Ordinance overrides other Hong Kong legislations as provided by Sections 3 and 4 of the Ordinance.
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Kong, the Bill of Rights should simply incorporate the ICCPR as applied to Hong Kong. It had been agreed in the
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The HKBORO enabled Hong Kong to enter the era of judicial review of legislations. The practice of utilizing
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Section 3(2) provides that all earlier laws identified as contravening the Ordinance are to be repealed.
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has recognized that provision on rights in HKBORO continue to override contravening laws:
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of legislations for the lack of relevant provisions on human rights protection in the
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was stipulated in the Sino-British Joint Declaration and Article 39 of the Basic Law.
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The First Decade: The Hong Kong SAR in Retrospective and Introspective Perspectives
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One Country, Two Systems" in Crisis: Hong Kong's Transformation Since the Handover
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Chen, Albert H.Y. (2006). "Constitutional Adjudication in Post-1997 Hong Kong".
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in achieving the rights to privacy as provided in article 14 of the HKBORO, the
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as part of the laws of the Hong Kong SAR in accordance with the Decision of the
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Leung, Frankie Fook-lun (1991). "Hong Kong Bill of Rights Ordinance".
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of legislation flourished. Constitutional review principles like
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Gurung Kesh Bahadur v Director of Immigration (2002) 5 HKCFAR 480
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Gurung Kesh Bahadur v Director of Immigration (2002) 5 HKCFAR 480
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The HKBORO was given an entrenched status by an amendment to the
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Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau, HKSAR Government
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the maintenance of public order, and inconsistent with the
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HKBORO contains 14 sections divided into three parts:
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Standing Committee of the National People's Congress
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International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
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International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
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Hong Kong: Sweet and Maxwell. p. 567. 657:Cap. 383 Hong Kong Bill of Rights Ordinance 308:1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre 934:Hong Kong Basic Law Handbook (2nd Edition) 919:Hong Kong Basic Law Handbook (2nd Edition) 761:Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau 708:Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau 610:Koo Sze Yiu v Chief Executive of the HKSAR 543:Leung Kwok Hung v HKSAR(2005) 8 HKCFAR 229 513:Leung Kwok Hung v HKSAR(2005) 8 HKCFAR 229 198: 332:The Bill of Rights was introduced to the 574:concerning the presumption of innocence. 1027:Hong Kong Bill of Rights Ordinance 1991 644: 301:Hong Kong Special Administration Region 221:Hēung góng yàhn kyùhn faat on tìuh laih 55: 1053:Treaties extended to British Hong Kong 970:. Lanham: Lexington Books. p. 78. 171: 20: 7: 786:"Hong Kong Bill of Rights Ordinance" 235:Hoeng gong jan kyun faat on tiu lai 949:Pacific Rim Law and Policy Journal 868:Chan, Johannes; Lim, C.L. (2015). 772: 746:Chan, Johannes; Lim, C.L. (2015). 253:Hong Kong Bill of Rights Ordinance 175:Hong Kong Bill of Rights Ordinance 158:1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2003, 2017 24:Hong Kong Bill of Rights Ordinance 14: 1048:National human rights instruments 870:Law of the Hong Kong Constitution 748:Law of the Hong Kong Constitution 726:Annotated Ordinances of Hong Kong 550:Notable applications and case law 1020: 82:Legislative Council of Hong Kong 39:Legislative Council of Hong Kong 29: 1000:"Koo Sze Yiu v Chief Executive" 906:. Hong Kong: Sweet and Maxwell. 566:The first Bill of Rights case, 234: 220: 372:Status in the hierarchy of law 326:Sino-British Joint Declaration 190: 1: 885:International Legal Materials 297:British Dependent Territories 633:United States Bill of Rights 570:1 HKCLR 127, decided by the 259:), often referred to as the 562:have since been developed. 1074: 835:Chen, Albert H.Y. (2007). 623:Human rights in Hong Kong 245: 197: 179: 162: 157: 44: 28: 720:Lo, P. Y. (March 2007). 537:and Non-permanent Judge 463:Hong Kong Letters Patent 389:Hong Kong Letters Patent 263:, is Chapter 383 of the 261:Hong Kong Bill of Rights 185:Traditional Chinese 902:Bokhary, Kemal (2015). 815:Hong Kong e-Legislation 790:Hong Kong e-Legislation 585:Leung Kwok Hung v HKSAR 579:Public Order Ordinance 547: 497: 445: 394:Public Order Ordinance 287:The Government of the 16:Ordinance of Hong Kong 1043:Hong Kong legislation 628:Human Rights Act 1998 556:constitutional review 459:constitutional review 422:Court of Final Appeal 413:on 23 February 1997. 606:Hong Kong Government 594:proportionality test 509:proportionality test 507:. Subsequently, the 454:Albert Chen Hung-yee 442:(1999) 2 HKCFAR 442 440:HKSAR v. Ng Kung Siu 313:Hong Kong Government 279:into Hong Kong law. 966:Wong, Y.C. (2008). 531:Patrick Chan Siu-oi 529:, Permanent Judges 334:Legislative Council 166:Current legislation 96:Legislative history 473:After the Handover 1025:The full text of 539:Sir Anthony Mason 511:was developed in 404:entrenched status 265:Laws of Hong Kong 249: 248: 241: 240: 215:Yale Romanization 170: 169: 109:David Robert Ford 1065: 1058:Law of Hong Kong 1024: 1008: 1007: 996: 990: 989: 978: 972: 971: 963: 957: 956: 944: 938: 937: 929: 923: 922: 914: 908: 907: 899: 893: 892: 880: 874: 873: 865: 859: 858: 847: 841: 840: 832: 826: 825: 823: 821: 807: 801: 800: 798: 796: 782: 776: 770: 764: 758: 752: 751: 743: 737: 736: 734: 732: 717: 711: 705: 696: 695: 693: 691: 682: 674: 668: 667: 665: 663: 649: 568:R v Sin Yau Ming 545: 495: 443: 237: 236: 223: 222: 199: 193: 192: 172: 33: 21: 1073: 1072: 1068: 1067: 1066: 1064: 1063: 1062: 1033: 1032: 1017: 1012: 1011: 998: 997: 993: 980: 979: 975: 965: 964: 960: 946: 945: 941: 931: 930: 926: 916: 915: 911: 901: 900: 896: 882: 881: 877: 867: 866: 862: 849: 848: 844: 834: 833: 829: 819: 817: 809: 808: 804: 794: 792: 784: 783: 779: 771: 767: 759: 755: 745: 744: 740: 730: 728: 719: 718: 714: 706: 699: 689: 687: 680: 676: 675: 671: 661: 659: 651: 650: 646: 641: 619: 572:Court of Appeal 560:proportionality 552: 546: 535:Roberto Ribeiro 524: 496: 486: 475: 450: 444: 433: 406: 374: 346: 285: 105:Chief Secretary 78:Enacted by 63: 60: 54: 53: 17: 12: 11: 5: 1071: 1069: 1061: 1060: 1055: 1050: 1045: 1035: 1034: 1031: 1030: 1016: 1015:External links 1013: 1010: 1009: 991: 973: 958: 939: 924: 909: 894: 875: 860: 842: 827: 802: 777: 765: 753: 738: 712: 697: 669: 643: 642: 640: 637: 636: 635: 630: 625: 618: 615: 614: 613: 598: 597: 582: 575: 551: 548: 525:Chief Justice 522: 487:Chief Justice 484: 474: 471: 449: 446: 434:Chief Justice 431: 405: 398: 385: 384: 381: 373: 370: 369: 368: 362: 356: 345: 342: 338:Letters Patent 289:United Kingdom 284: 281: 275:so that it is 247: 246: 243: 242: 239: 238: 231: 225: 224: 217: 211: 210: 208:Yue: Cantonese 204: 203: 202:Transcriptions 195: 194: 187: 181: 180: 177: 176: 168: 167: 160: 159: 155: 154: 150: 149: 146: 140: 139: 136: 134:Second reading 130: 129: 126: 120: 119: 116: 112: 111: 102: 98: 97: 93: 92: 89: 85: 84: 79: 75: 74: 69: 65: 64: 62: 61: 57: 47: 46: 45: 42: 41: 35: 34: 26: 25: 15: 13: 10: 9: 6: 4: 3: 2: 1070: 1059: 1056: 1054: 1051: 1049: 1046: 1044: 1041: 1040: 1038: 1029:at Wikisource 1028: 1023: 1019: 1018: 1014: 1005: 1001: 995: 992: 987: 983: 977: 974: 969: 962: 959: 954: 950: 943: 940: 935: 928: 925: 920: 913: 910: 905: 898: 895: 890: 886: 879: 876: 871: 864: 861: 856: 852: 846: 843: 838: 831: 828: 816: 812: 806: 803: 791: 787: 781: 778: 774: 769: 766: 762: 757: 754: 749: 742: 739: 727: 723: 716: 713: 709: 704: 702: 698: 686: 679: 673: 670: 658: 654: 648: 645: 638: 634: 631: 629: 626: 624: 621: 620: 616: 611: 607: 603: 602: 601: 595: 590: 586: 583: 580: 576: 573: 569: 565: 564: 563: 561: 557: 549: 544: 540: 536: 532: 528: 521: 516: 514: 510: 506: 502: 494: 490: 483: 478: 472: 470: 466: 464: 460: 455: 447: 441: 437: 430: 425: 423: 419: 414: 412: 403: 399: 397: 395: 390: 382: 379: 378: 377: 371: 366: 363: 360: 357: 354: 351: 350: 349: 343: 341: 339: 335: 330: 327: 321: 319: 314: 309: 304: 302: 298: 294: 291:ratified the 290: 282: 280: 278: 274: 270: 266: 262: 258: 254: 244: 232: 230: 226: 218: 216: 212: 209: 205: 200: 196: 188: 186: 182: 178: 173: 165: 161: 156: 151: 147: 145: 144:Third reading 141: 137: 135: 131: 127: 125: 124:First reading 121: 117: 113: 110: 106: 103: 101:Introduced by 99: 94: 90: 86: 83: 80: 76: 73: 70: 66: 56: 52: 51: 43: 40: 36: 32: 27: 22: 19: 1003: 994: 985: 976: 967: 961: 952: 948: 942: 933: 927: 918: 912: 903: 897: 888: 884: 878: 869: 863: 854: 845: 836: 830: 818:. 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Index


Legislative Council of Hong Kong
Long title
Cap. 383
Legislative Council of Hong Kong
Chief Secretary
David Robert Ford
First reading
Second reading
Third reading
Traditional Chinese
Yue: Cantonese
Yale Romanization
Jyutping
Laws of Hong Kong
transposed
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
incorporated
United Kingdom
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
British Dependent Territories
Hong Kong Special Administration Region
1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre
Hong Kong Government
Basic Law
Sino-British Joint Declaration
Legislative Council
Letters Patent
Hong Kong Letters Patent
Public Order Ordinance

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