Hong Kong lawmakers have passed amendments to the city’s union laws, banning anyone convicted of national security offences from serving in trade unions for life.
The amendment bill, passed by a show of hands in the opposition-free legislature on Wednesday, contains a slew of new terms to tighten union laws on national security grounds, including a requirement for foreign funding to be vetted by authorities.
The changes to the Trade Unions Ordinance were proposed in February “to better fulfil the duty of safeguarding national security” under the city’s two national security laws.
The bill will be gazetted on July 4 and is scheduled to take effect in January next year.
The amendments will also grant the registrar of trade unions additional powers to reject any registrations or mergers of trade unions on national security grounds.
Labour minister Chris Sun told the Legislative Council (LegCo) on Wednesday: “After the 2019 ‘black-clad violence,’ some people and groups with ulterior motives attempted to use trade unions as a cover to carry out acts and activities that endanger national security.”
He said the amendments would “strengthen the statutory powers of the Secretary for the Registration of Trade Unions to supervise and manage trade unions” under the Beijing-imposed national security law and the locally enacted Safeguarding National Security Ordinance, also known as Article 23.
National security terms
The amendment bill passed Wednesday states that the registrar will be empowered to reject applications for new registrations or mergers of trade unions “on the basis of the need to safeguard national security,” with no possibility of appeal.
However, a legal challenge in the form of a judicial review will be allowed.
The registrar can also decide whether to allow the applicant to make representations, and will consult the authorities to “strike a balance” between national security and residents’ rights to form and join unions.
The ordinance will also permanently prohibit people convicted of national security offences from serving as an officer of any trade union, including serving on the board of directors and initiating a registration for a new union. Offenders face a maximum fine of HK$50,000 and three years in jail.
To bar funding from an “external force” that would endanger national security, unions must make an application to the registrar, declaring the source and use of the funds provided. Even if approved, unions will still be prohibited from using those funds in local elections, and the funds will be subject to heightened scrutiny.
The bill adopts the same definition of “external force” under Article 23 to cover foreign governments, political parties, and external organisations “that pursue political ends,” as well as their related personnel.
If a trade union receives or spends foreign funding or donations without approval, it may be fined up to HK$200,000.
Unionists will also face heightened regulations to serve as officers of overseas organisations.
At LegCo on Wednesday, labour constituency lawmaker Chau Siu-chung said that many unions supporting the amendments had voiced concerns about inadvertently breaking the law and called for more government support to reduce the administrative burden on unions.
Since Beijing unilaterally imposed national security legislation in Hong Kong on June 30, 2020, after months-long pro-democracy protests and unrest, many labour unions, including the pro-democracy Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions, have disbanded, citing political pressure.
Union leaders are among the 45 pro-democracy figures jailed for subversion under the 2020 national security law. Meanwhile, pro-Beijing union coalitions remain active, holding seats in the city’s patriots-only legislature.
