HK's top judge shrugs off Beijing remarks on autonomy

HONG KONG, June 15 (Reuters) Hong Kong's Chief Justice Andrew Li has played down a recent speech by the head of China's parliament on the limits of the city's autonomy, saying its judicial independence is guaranteed, a paper reported today.

Wu Bangguo, the Chairman of the National People's Congress, said last week at a forum on the city's mini-constitution, the Basic Law, that Hong Kong would only get as much autonomy as China chose to grant it, and that its authority wasn't intrinsic.

Commentators and politicians said the speech showed Beijing was taking a harder line in seeking to curtail Hong Kong's aspirations to realise direct elections by 2012.

Legal experts also said the comments threatened the independence of Hong Kong's judiciary, but Li played down this.

''There is nothing in his speech which indicated he was questioning this fundamental principle,'' Li was quoted as saying by the South China Morning Post.

Li has been the former British colony's top judge since it reverted to Chinese rule almost 10 years ago on July 1, 1997.

''The independence of the judiciary is fully guaranteed in the Basic Law and is a pillar of Hong Kong's society. The exercise of judicial power by the courts is not subject to any interference by the executive, by the legislature or by anybody else,'' he was quoted as saying.

But other constitutional law experts said Wu's speech suggested a marked shift in Beijing's thinking.

''Our source of power comes from the Basic Law,'' said Eric Cheung, an assistant law professor at the University of Hong Kong.

''The quantum leap is that (Wu) is now saying that Hong Kong's source of power comes from the Central government without mentioning the Basic Law,'' he added.

An opinion poll by the University of Hong Kong showed people's trust in Beijing had dropped 8 per cent since Wu's comments to 50 per cent, reversing a positive trend that had seen Beijing's popularity at record highs two months ago.

''If Wu's speech had indeed turned the tide, it would be really unfortunate,'' said pollster Robert Chung in a written commentary on the results.

REUTERS JT RK1035