The SCMP reports
- Andrew Cheung calls for greater public tolerance after two judges were sent letters containing corrosive substances
- Chief justice also stresses need for public access to courts at a time when Legal Aid Department is considering restricting assistance
Hong Kong’s chief justice has expressed alarm over pressure being exerted on the courts after two judges were recently threatened, saying attacks on the rule of law must be condemned.
Andrew Cheung Kui-nung also stressed on Friday the importance of public access to court services and lawyers at a time when the Legal Aid Department was considering tightening rules on how it offered assistance. Critics have raised concerns the changes could affect opposition figures’ choice of defence counsel, as well as the ability of residents to mount legal challenges against the government.
“Any attempts to exert undue pressure on judges and judicial officers will violate the rule of law spirit and deal a blow to the principle of judicial independence, which shall be severely condemned,” Cheung said at the opening ceremony of the Law Society’s Law Week, which is aimed at promoting legal knowledge within the community.
The comments mark the first time the chief justice has spoken in public since letters containing a highly corrosive substance were sent to Magistrate Pang Leung-ting and Deputy Judge Kathie Cheung Kit-yee on Wednesday. The judges were last week both sent mail containing lye, also known as caustic soda or sodium hydroxide, a substance that can cause chemical burns.
Pang and Cheung recently handed down guilty verdicts and jailed participants of the 2019 anti-government protests, although Pang also acquitted several defendants.
Judges have found themselves in the hot seat in the past year, with divisive political disputes making their way into court as protesters are tried for a variety of crimes related to the social unrest. The defendants argue they are being denied mercy, while the pro-establishment camp says judges are being too lenient on the accused.
Without specifically referring to the recent threats, Cheung appealed to the public for greater understanding.
