Article 23 Last Lever For Democracy: Ronny Tong

Executive councillor Ronny Tong has said he thinks enacting national security laws is the only bargaining chip Hong Kong people have left in striving for democracy.

Speaking on RTHK's special Backchat programme on Tuesday, he said people should focus on introducing a version of Article 23 of the Basic Law that's compatible with the freedoms and other core values of Hong Kong.

Tong said national security legislation is what Beijing wants, and if it were not brought in it would be difficult to convince the central government to continue with 'One Country, Two Systems' after 2047.

However, another guest on the programme, Democratic Party member Senia Ng, insisted there should be a democratically elected Chief Executive and legislature in Hong Kong before the introduction of national security laws.

Another speaker, pro-Beijing lawmaker Junius Ho said there was no evidence that the central government has been pushing for Article 23 legislation.