Photo: CFP

 
Some officials and legal representatives in Hong Kong expressed regret on Friday at the resignations of the two non-permanent judges (NPJ) of the Court of Final Appeal (CFA) of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), and some believed that some individuals are attempting to use the participation of British judges in "political resistance" to pressure the Chinese government while some said the resignations were linked to the fact that the UK has become increasingly negative toward Hong Kong. 

Lawrence Collins and Jonathan Sumption, two NPJs from other common law jurisdictions of the CFA, announced their resignations on Thursday, local outlet The Standard reported. They were appointed as the NPJs of the city's top court in 2019 and 2011 respectively. 

The Hong Kong CFA Ordinance provides for a list of non-permanent Hong Kong judges and a list of judges from other common law jurisdictions. The term of appointment of such judges is three years, according to the media report. 

HKSAR's Chief Executive John Lee expressed on Friday regret at the resignations, and Lee noted that Collins had stated that he continued to "have the fullest confidence in the Court and the total independence of its members." 

In response to Collins' statement that "he had resigned from the Court because of the political situation in Hong Kong," Lee said the provisions of the Basic Law, the National Security Law for Hong Kong and the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance all explicitly stipulate that the rights and freedoms under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights as applied to Hong Kong, including the freedom of speech, of the press, of publication, of association, of assembly, of procession and of demonstration, are to be protected in accordance with the law."

The Law Society of Hong Kong said in a statement sent to the Global Times on Friday that the participation of all current and former NPJs in the work of CFA has made a significant contribution and it strongly supports the continuation of the role of overseas NPJs in the administration of justice in Hong Kong as provided for in the Basic Law. 

The Law Society has full confidence in Hong Kong's judicial independence and integrity, Law Society President Chan Chak-ming was quoted as saying in the statement. 

The resignations reduced the number of overseas judges in the CFA from 10 to eight, local media platform Ming Pao said. 

Some current overseas judges, when asked, said they would continue to serve. The most senior British judge, Leonard Hubert Hoffmann, stated that he plans to come to Hong Kong for hearings later this year, but noted that he is already 90 years old and has served as a non-permanent judge for 26 years, the media report said. 

Australian judge Justice French expressed his intention to continue serving as a non-permanent judge, "supporting the judges of the Court," he was quoted as saying in the media report. 

Executive Council member and senior barrister Ronny Tong Ka-wah also expressed regret over the resignations of the two judges when contacted by the Global Times on Friday. 

Tong believes that the UK has become increasingly negative toward Hong Kong and speculated that the two judges might have faced considerable political pressure from their home country. 

The timing of their resignation inevitably leads to associations with the Article 23 legislation and the latest verdict of dozens of defendants related to the case of illegal primaries, which negatively impacts perceptions of Hong Kong's rule of law. 

"I hope that other British judges can fill the vacancies," he said, stressing that the confidence in Hong Kong's rule of law should not rely solely on the judges but also on the court's decisions.

Willy Fu, a law professor who is also the director of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong & Macao Studies, said he believes that some individuals are attempting to use the participation of British judges in "political resistance" to pressure the Chinese government.

Foreign forces are using political stances to force British judges to resign from their positions as NPJs of Hong Kong's CFA to pressure China, Fu told the Global Times on Friday. "Such political manipulation and clownish tricks will not succeed." 

Robert Reed and Patrick Stewart Hodge, who also sit on the UK's Supreme Court, resigned from Hong Kong's CFA in a move backed by then British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss and Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab in 2022, Nikkei reported at the time. 

The rule of law, human rights, freedom, and judicial independence are core values of Hong Kong, and Hong Kong's rule of law index ranks higher globally than that of the US, Fu noted. 

Since the return to the motherland, Hong Kong has retained its original legal system and final adjudication power, and the successful implementation of One Country, Two Systems principle is widely recognized globally, the legal expert continued. 

Fu also said he is confident that the CFA will be able to find suitable foreign common law judges to fill the NPJ vacancies and firmly uphold the rule of law and judicial independence in Hong Kong.