Topical Talk XII

Basic Law Article 23 Legislation: Safeguarding National Security Ordinance

Dr. Thomas So delivered a talk entitled “Basic Law Article 23 Legislation: Safeguarding National Security Ordinance” on 12 February 2025.

Dr. Thomas So is a Partner at Grandall Zimmern Law Firm with experience in advising on shareholders and equity-related disputes, property-related, libel, and media-related litigation work, as well as litigation and arbitration in the PRC. Dr So is currently a Council Member of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University. Dr. So was a Founding Member and Chairman of eBRAM International Online Dispute Resolution Centre (eBRAM) and has been appointed Chairman since 2020. Dr. So is the Past President of The Law Society of Hong Kong and a Member of multiple arbitration and mediation committees in Asia, committed to promoting and improving the standard of legal and dispute resolution services in Hong Kong.  In January 2018, Dr. So was appointed as a Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference Member. He was commissioned as a Mediator of the Guangdong Court’s Cross-border Commercial Dispute Resolution in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area by The High People’s Court of Guangdong Province for 3 years. He obtained his Doctor of Laws from Tsinghua University and has been frequently invited by lecturers at various universities in Mainland China.

This talk offered a comprehensive examination of the Basic Law Article 23 Legislation and its pivotal role in safeguarding national security within the framework of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.The Basic Law Article 23 mandates that the Hong Kong SAR enact legislation to prohibit acts such as treason, secession, sedition, and subversion against the Central People's Government, as well as to counter threats from foreign interference and espionage. The seminar explored the significance of this constitutional duty and its implications for Hong Kong's legal framework.During the talk, Dr. Thomas So, JP, delved into the historical and legal underpinnings of Article 23 and the National Security Ordinance (“the Ordinance”). His presentation highlighted the Ordinance’s key provisions, including offenses related to national security, mechanisms for enforcement, and safeguards to balance individual rights with national security concerns.