Designated national security law judges
| Designated National Security Law Judges | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chinese | 國安法指定法官 | ||||||||
| Literal meaning | national security law designated judges | ||||||||
| |||||||||
In Hong Kong, designated national security law judges are incumbent magistrates or judges who are further appointed by the Chief Executive to handle national security offence cases at various levels of the court system.[1] Judges without the designation by the Chief Executive are not allowed to handle these cases.[1]
Designation[]
The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of China enacted the Hong Kong national security law on 30 June 2020. Paragraph 3 of Article 44 of the law requires national security offence cases to be handle by "designated judges".[1]
According to the law, the Chief Executive should designate judges from incumbent magistrates and judges from each level of the court system to handle national security offence cases. Prior to granting the designation, the Chief Executive may consult the Chief Justice and the Committee for Safeguarding National Security. The tenure of office as a designated judge is one year.
Moreover, the Chief Executive is required by the law to not grant the designation to those who have "made any statement or behaved in any manner endangering national security". And the designation can be withdrawn if a designated judge makes any statement or acts in any way that is considered endangering national security.
Publicly Known Designated Judges[]
The complete list of designated judges is not made available to the public as the government believes such revelation poses security threats for the designated judges.[2] However, when individual national security cases go through various legal proceedings in open court, the press and the public find out who the presiding designated judges are. Yet, those judges who have been designated but have not yet presided in open court on any national security case are not known to the public. The exact dates of the start and the end of the designation are also unknown to the public.
Here is a table of publicly known current and former designated judges and magistrates:[2]
| Designated Judges or Magistrates | Corresponding Courts | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Andrew Cheung[3] | Court of Final Appeal | Chief Justice |
| Roberto Ribeiro[3] | Court of Final Appeal | |
| Joseph Fok[4] | Court of Final Appeal | |
| Patrick Chan[4] | Court of Final Appeal | Non-permanent Judge |
| Frank Stock[4] | Court of Final Appeal | Non-permanent Judge |
| Johnson Lam[5] | Court of Appeal; Court of Final Appeal | |
| Jeremy Poon[5] | Court of Appeal | Chief Judge |
| Derek Pang[6] | Court of Appeal | |
| Esther Toh Lye-Ping[7] | Court of First Instance | |
| Anthea Pang Po-Kam[7] | Court of First Instance; Court of Appeal | |
| Anderson Chow Ka-Ming[8] | Court of Appeal | |
| Wilson Chan Ka-Shun[7] | Court of First Instance | |
| Susana Maria D'Almada Remedios[9] | Court of First Instance | |
| Alex Lee Wan-Tang[10] | Court of First Instance | |
| Andrew Chan Hing Wai[11] | Court of First Instance | |
| Stanley Chan Kwong-Chi[12] | District Court | |
| Amanda Jane Woodcock[13] | District Court | |
| Kwok Wai-kin[14] | District Court | |
| Victor So Wai-Tak[15] | Chief Magistrate | |
| Don So Man-Lung[16] | Magistrate | |
| Peter Law Tak-Chuen[15] | Magistrate |
Retired judges[]
| Designated Judges or Magistrates | Corresponding Courts | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Geoffrey Ma[3] | Court of Final Appeal | Ma retired from the bench in January 2021 |
| Wally Yeung[5] | Court of Appeal | Yeung retired from the bench in August 2021 |
References[]
- ^ a b c "The Law of the People's Republic of China on Safeguarding National Security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region" (PDF).
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ a b Center for Asian Law. "Hong Kong's National Security Law and the Right to a Fair Trial" (PDF). Georgetown University Law Center. p. 10. Archived (PDF) from the original on 17 October 2021.
...the Hong Kong government has refused to make the list of designated judges public, claiming that doing so could create security risks judges who have been so named.
- ^ a b c "大公文彙盛讚馬道立等三法官收押黎智英乃"眾���所歸"". Radio France Internationale (in Chinese). 2 January 2021. Archived from the original on 3 January 2021.
中共在港喉舌大公和文彙兩報對終審法院日前裁定再度收押涉嫌觸犯香港國安法的黎智英，是“正確決定，眾望所歸”，又對終院首席法官馬道立、常任法官張舉能和李義三人盛讚一番，形容裁決是“撥亂反正”的第一步。
- ^ a b c "Hong Kong leader appoints 3 more national security judges for appeal against media mogul Jimmy Lai's bail". Hong Kong Free Press. 28 January 2021.
The appeal will be heard by five judges, Chief Justice Andrew Cheung, Judges Roberto Ribeiro, Joseph Fok, Patrick Chan, and Frank Stock.
- ^ a b c "HK court upholds decision for no jury at first national security trial". Reuters. 22 June 2021. Archived from the original on 10 September 2021.
"Although jury trial is the conventional mode of trial in the Court of First Instance, it should not be assumed to be the only means of achieving fairness in the criminal process," according to a summary of the decision by judges Jeremy Poon, Wally Yeung and Johnson Lam.
- ^ "唐英傑案換法援「官派律師」 新代表律師合夥人曾是政協 劉偉聰被剔出案件". Hong Kong Citizen News (眾新聞) (in Chinese). 23 November 2021.
案件本周五早上9時半將在高等法院上訴庭進行指示聆訊，司法機構網頁一度標記「HC Judge 1」，到傍晚揭曉是上訴庭法官彭偉昌。
- ^ a b c "Landmark Hong Kong security trial wraps up in test for rule of law". Reuters. 20 July 2021. Archived from the original on 27 October 2021.
The verdict will be delivered on July 27 by a panel of three judges; Esther Toh, Anthea Pang and Wilson Chan - who were picked by Hong Kong's pro-Beijing leader to hear national security cases.
- ^ "法官周家明升上訴庭 高浩文料接手司法覆核案". Hong Kong Citizen News (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 12 July 2021.
周家明亦以國安法指定法官身分，處理國安法首案唐英傑的人身保護令申請，並在判詞中否定國安法有拒絕向被告批出保釋假定，認為大部分保釋申請並不會改變。
- ^ "【蘋果涉違國安法】拒前CEO張劍虹保釋 高院引律政司指隨時可勾結《台蘋》續危害國安". Hong Kong Citizen News (眾新聞) (in Chinese). 10 November 2021. Archived from the original on 10 November 2021.
《蘋果日報》與六名前高層被控「串謀勾結外國或境外勢力危害國家安全」，各被告提堂後還柙。壹傳媒前行政總裁張劍虹上周向高等法院申請保釋，法官李素蘭聽取陳詞後拒絕。
- ^ "【解讀批准保釋判詞】法官李運騰暗批律政司證據乏力 黎智英評論非請求外國干預". Hong Kong Citizen News (眾新聞) (in Chinese). 29 December 2020. Archived from the original on 29 June 2021.
高等法院國安法指定法官李運騰早前批准被控國安法的壹傳媒創辦人黎智英保釋，李官周二在書面判詞中質疑律政司在國安法及詐騙案中的證據不如控方聲稱強，當中黎智英網上言論，「表面上似是評論及批評而非請求（外國干預），儘管有人會不同意觀點甚至覺得感到冒犯」。
- ^ "言語治療師工會5理事被控 其中兩人申請保釋被拒". RTHK (in Chinese). 12 November 2021. Archived from the original on 21 November 2021.
5名香港言語治療師總工會理事，被控「串謀刊印、發布、分發、展示或複製煽動刊物」罪。高等法院拒絕其中兩人的保釋申請。25歲工會主席黎雯齡及28歲工會秘書伍巧怡，今日由資深大律師潘熙及夏博義代表申請保釋，法官陳慶偉聽畢各方陳詞後，拒絕有關保釋申請。
- ^ "【國會報告】罕有點名批評港國安法官 斥司法機構獨立「虛有其名」". Radio Free Asia (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 20 November 2021.
本台發現，當中更罕有地點名批評多位國安法指定法官，包括法官陳廣池、裁判官蘇惠德、法官林文瀚，並詳列多宗國安法案件，連「羊村案」亦有提及，更直斥司法機構獨立是「虛有其名」。
- ^ "香港六四集會案：第二批被告人判刑 何俊仁等民主派元老監禁4至10個月". BBC (in Chinese). 15 September 2021. Archived from the original on 16 September 2021.
案件並非根據《香港國安法》起訴，但主審法官胡雅文是行政長官林鄭月娥根據該法選任的「國安法指定法官」。
- ^ "23歲理大男生擬認煽動他人分裂國家 涉「宣揚恐怖主義」4港大生需時申法援明年再訊". Hong Kong Citizen News (in Chinese). 28 October 2021. Archived from the original on 28 October 2021.
理工大學��學生呂世瑜涉利用住所作武器庫，收藏胡椒球彈及手槍等物品，被指違反國安法。案件今（28日）在區域法院提堂，辯方透露呂擬承認煽動他人分裂國家罪，其餘的無牌管有槍械罪及管有攻擊性武器罪，則獲控方不提證供起訴。法官郭偉健押後案件至明年2月25日答辯，被告期間繼續還柙。
- ^ a b "National security judge Victor So is on sick leave: Judiciary". The Standard (Hong Kong). 5 October 2021. Archived from the original on 5 October 2021.
All his works would be handled by magistrate Peter Law Tak-chuen temporarily.
- ^ "賢學思政3人被控違國安法 國安法指定法官蘇文隆拒3人保釋". Radio Free Asia. 21 September 2021. Archived from the original on 21 November 2021.
- Judiciary of Hong Kong