The bilingual version of the “Annotations of the Hong Kong National Security Law & Sedition Offences in the Crimes Ordinance” has been updated, the Department of Justice announced today.

The annotations now cover judgments of cases relating to national security up to January 31 this year, and the Court of Final Appeal’s judgments in two important cases in March. The relevant provisions of the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance (6 of 2024), the Safeguarding National Security (Office for Safeguarding National Security of the Central People’s Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region) Regulation, and the Safeguarding National Security (Declaration of Prohibited Places) Order, are also referred to.

The department noted that since the promulgation and implementation of the National Security Law in 2020, all judicial decisions in national security cases are made public in an open and transparent manner.

Secretary for Justice Paul Lam said: “The focus of national security education is to cultivate the self-awareness of the general public in safeguarding national security. To this end, we must deepen and strengthen the public’s understanding of the laws on safeguarding national security and relevant rule of law principles.”

The annotations provide a simple and practical tool to assist the public in comprehending national security laws and cases, he added.