Wang emphasizes 'supreme legal authority' of Constitution

Hong Kong's rule of law must be implemented under the constitutional order established by the national Constitution and the Basic Law of the special administrative region, the central government's top official in the SAR said on Wednesday.

Wang Zhimin, director of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the HKSAR, made the remarks in his opening speech at the city's third National Constitution Day forum.

Wang stressed that the Constitution has the supreme legal authority across the country, including the Hong Kong SAR. It's the origin of the "one country, two systems" principle and the SAR's institutions, he said.

Safeguarding the constitutional order as prescribed in the Constitution and the Basic Law of the SAR is fundamental to the comprehensive and accurate implementation of the "one country, two systems" principle, Wang said.

There is no constitutional order without the national Constitution in Hong Kong, nor is there rule of law without the national Constitution, Wang said.

To cherish the rule of law — one of Hong Kong's core values — the people of Hong Kong must safeguard the Constitution as the core of this core value, Wang said.

Noting that the prolonged violence in Hong Kong has seriously trampled on the city's rule of law and public order for nearly six months, Wang said those acts have seriously challenged the bottom line of the "one country, two systems" principle, with the nature of challenging Hong Kong's constitutional order.

To safeguard the national Constitution and the SAR's constitutional order is also fundamental to the people of Hong Kong's well-being and the city's prosperity and stability, Wang said.