The Law Society of Hong Kong and the Hong Kong Bar Association are publicly defending a Hong Kong court’s decision that has come under attack from the Chinese government, with the Law Society warning that “nothing should be said or done that will undermine, or will be perceived to undermine, judicial independence and the rule of law”.
The statement by the Law Society, the city’s usually conservative professional body for solicitors, was issued following an attack by China’s National People’s Congress on a Hong Kong court ruling that overturned a controversial mask ban. The ban, which prohibits the wearing of masks during public assemblies, was passed in October after Carrie Lam, Hong Kong’s chief executive, enacted emergency powers that allowed her to bypass the territory’s parliament. Demonstrators have worn masks throughout the protests to avoid police identification.
