Cartoon by Dave Granlund

'Historic moment': China opens security office in Hong Kong

Al Jazeera: China has opened an office to "safeguard national security" in Hong Kong, turning a hotel near a hotspot for pro-democracy protests and the annual vigil marking the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown into its new headquarters.

Carrie Lam, the chief executive of Hong Kong, called the inauguration on Wednesday of the Office of Safeguarding National Security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region an "historic moment" for the semi-autonomous city.

Speaking at a ceremony at the former Metropark Hotel, Lam said Hong Kong residents "are witnessing another milestone in the establishment of a sound legal system and enforcement mechanism for maintaining national security in Hong Kong".

The office, in the bustling shopping and commercial district of Causeway Bay, near Victoria Park, will allow Chinese intelligence agents to operate openly in Hong Kong for the first time since the 1997 handover and oversee the enactment of the sweeping national security legislation that was imposed on the city last week.

The law - which bans what China calls secession, subversion, terrorism and collusion with foreign forces - empowers the office to take enforcement action in the most serious cases. It also allows agents to take suspects across the border for trials in Communist Party-controlled courts and specifies special privileges for Chinese agents, including that Hong Kong authorities cannot inspect their vehicles.

As the new bureau was opened, officials said school students would be banned from singing "Glory to Hong Kong", the protest movement's unofficial anthem, as well as any other songs with political messages. Secretary for Education Kevin Yeung told lawmakers students should also not take part in class boycotts, organise human chains or chant slogans.

Hardliner boss

Zheng Yanxiong, the newly appointed chief of the office, and Luo Huining, the head of China's Liaison Office in the city - Beijing's top representative office - attended the opening ceremony.

Luo said the new office was an "envoy for safeguarding Hong Kong" and "the gatekeeper of national security" in the city.

"Those with ulterior motives and who are anti-China and seek to destabilise Hong Kong have not only stigmatised the office, but also smeared the legal system and rule of law in the Chinese mainland in an attempt to stir up unnecessary worries and fears among Hong Kong residents," he added.

Zheng said the office would enforce the law strictly "without infringing on the legitimate rights and interests of any individual or organisation".

A Communist Party hardliner and a speaker of Hong Kong's Cantonese dialect, Zheng became prominent during a clampdown on land rights protesters in a village across the border in neighbouring Guangdong province >>>