MACAU DAILY TIMES 澳門每日時報Government refutes US Congress over human rights allegations

TThe Macau government condemned the human rights allegations in the latest report by the US Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC), released in the US late last week.

The local government expressed a “strong opposition to the unfounded accusations made by the United States of America, citing the latest Periodic Review of Macau by the United Nations Human Rights Council and the changes made to the Law on the Protection of National safety of the city.”

“The recently released US report takes a selective approach to the Human Rights Council’s concluding observations, in a typical practice of decontextualizing parts of the report that are not gaining traction,” the report said.

The local government refuted the allegations, saying that “the MSAR (Macau Special Administrative Region) underwent a review by the United Nations Human Rights Council in July 2022 on the implementation of provisions related to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.”

“In its concluding remarks, the Human Rights Council put forward some suggestions and welcomed the legislative and policy measures taken by the MSAR Government in relevant areas, and appreciated the constructive dialogue with the MSAR Government delegation as part of the periodic reporting process.”

The local government took issue with the CECC’s comments on recent changes to the National Security Law, which would affect the people’s guarantees and freedoms.

The local government said the changes to the National Security Protection Law “were largely based on the legislative experience in other jurisdictions, taking full account of Macao’s legal traditions and social realities, and strictly adhering to international human rights conventions.”

It added that “the work related to the protection of national security has been carried out in strict accordance with legal provisions and due process.”

“A balance has been struck to protect the fundamental rights and freedoms of residents while preventing and punishing acts that endanger national security.”

The response concluded with a call on the US Congress and other committees to “respect the facts, eliminate bias, and cease interfering in the internal affairs of MSAR using human rights as an excuse.”

The UN commission’s original report from July 2022 said Macau had no legal safeguards against police abuses, threats against journalists and the suppression of public demonstrations or other public gatherings.

Meanwhile, the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s Commissioner Office in Macao SAR also strongly opposed the US report.

A spokesperson for the Commissariat said yesterday that the amendment and implementation of the SAR National Security Law “further strengthened the institutional basis of national security and provided stronger protection for the legitimate rights and freedoms of residents.”

The spokesperson pointed out that the US should reflect on its own “law enforcement and human rights violations and immediately stop interfering in Macau’s affairs and China’s internal affairs in general.”

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