Hong Kong’s Legislative Council (LegCo) passed a bill that will allow a joint cleaning agreement at the renovated Huanggang Port border crossing with China.
The Huanggang Port Hong Kong Port Zone Bill was passed on Friday, with the legislature holding extra meetings before the summer recess.
The Hong Kong government has sought to reopen the port, located on the Shenzhen side, and ensure that travelers only have to pass one set of border checks.
The bill states that an area within Huanggang Port is under Hong Kong’s jurisdiction, meaning that Hong Kong authorities can enter the area to conduct border clearance and related enforcement.
According to the bill, Hong Kong’s port area will be open from July 31. However, Hong Kong and Shenzhen authorities have not yet decided when the complex will be fully open to the public.
The government approved the bill on Tuesday. The LegCo completed the first reading of the bill and began the second reading on Wednesday – the day the LegCo was originally scheduled to hold its last meetings before the summer break.
However, it then held additional meetings on Thursday and Friday to consider the bill, passing it on Friday afternoon.
Letter from the Minister of Security to LegCo
Local media reported that the process represented the fastest round of legislative scrutiny since authorities overhauled the electoral system in 2021 to ensure only “patriots” could become lawmakers. The passage of the bill was even faster than the 12 days of consideration provided for in the city’s domestic national security law.
The LegCo Secretariat said Security Minister Chris Tang sent one paper urging lawmakers to expedite legislation to ensure an early launch for the port.
Tang thanked the House on Friday during the second reading of the bill: “Since the bill was submitted to the Council on July 15, the LegCo has immediately called additional meetings of the House Committee and the Council to conduct an intensive and very efficient review,” Tang said in Cantonese.
Hong Kong and Shenzhen authorities began renovating Huanggang Port, on the Chinese side of the Shenzhen-Hong Kong border, in 2019.
The arrangement is similar to the shared cleaning setup at West Kowloon High Speed Rail Station. However, in the case of the train station, part of Hong Kong’s territory was ceded to China for joint clearance purposes.
