By Greg Torode

HONG KONG, (Reuters) – Hong Kong’s leader left vacant for over five months a spot on the panel which selects city judges. Three lawyers who are familiar with the matter said.

This extraordinary delay has raised doubts about the city’s autonomy as a judiciary.

It is important to nominate judges through the Judicial Offices’ Review Commission as these jurists will be able to rule on controversial issues like prosecutions under the Beijing-imposed national security law in 2020. The purpose of this controversial law was punishing subversion, terrorist acts, and collusion by foreign forces.

Lam delayed taking action on Neville Sarony’s nomination as a British trial lawyer. He is now in his 80s and has been relegated to the spot reserved for a Barrister.

Sarony, who has recently written in newspapers critical of Hong Kong’s government policies and supported free speech as well pro-democracy lawyers activists, expressed support for the latter. His nomination was not discussed by him.

Reuters was unable to determine why the delay occurred.

A Lam spokesman said the “appointment of (a) member” to the panel was being processed by the government and would be announced in due course.

A spokesman for the Hong Kong Bar Association did not answer questions about why Sarony’s decision was delayed, or whether Lam will reject Sarony outright.

    Pro-Beijing media and some Chinese officials have branded the barristers’ association as “anti-China” for its criticisms of government moves such as a 2019 proposal to allow suspects to be extradited to mainland China for trial.

    The absence has removed the voice of barristers from the panel, whose other seats go to judges, a solicitor, the city’s justice secretary and three others not involved in the practice of law.

Hong Kong is divided between two types of lawyers: solicitors who deal with legal issues and barristers who represent the courtroom.

    “Without a barrister, the set-up of the commission looks skewed in favour of the establishment,” said a legal scholar who has monitored the committee for several years. Barristers are an independent voice that can be of value, especially when the secretary for justice represents the prosecution.

    City leaders have previously acted within weeks to fill vacancies on the nine-member commission. Public records reveal that appointments have been made to the commission before the resignation of the previous member. Lawyers claim this highlights how routine the process is.

    The selection “is usually a mere formality but this time there is silence, and this strange delay,” said one lawyer familiar with the situation. Lam is “apparently waiting for a different team at Bar to propose a better name.”

    By delaying the decision on the barrister’s nomination, Lam is using her influence over the commission in a way not seen before and that strengthens the hand of pro-government figures on the panel, said the diplomats, lawyers and scholars.

     The lawyers and scholars say they are not aware of a previous instance when Hong Kong’s chief executive did not promptly accept the recommendations of the Bar Association or the Law Society, the solicitors’ association.

According to them, they are concerned that this situation may further jeopardize the freedoms of the financial centre. China was granted these rights in 1997 when Britain returned its colony to China.

    COLONIAL LEGACY

    The panel, created in 1976, has operated in its current form since 1991, under British and Chinese rule. It reports directly to the chief executive.

    The Bar Association’s new chairman, Victor Dawes, did not respond to Reuters requests for comment on Sarony’s nomination. After his Jan. 20 election, Dawes stated that his team would stand up for the rule of law as well as speak out about human rights concerns if needed.

    In response to Reuters questions to the commission’s chair, Chief Justice Andrew Cheung, a Judiciary spokesman said the city’s chief executive has the power to appoint members to the committee, including a barrister of her choice, although she must “consult” the Bar Association on the matter.

    The spokesman said there was no question of the committee “acting other than independently”, in line with the independence guaranteed by the Basic Law, Hong Kong’s mini-constitution.

    The commission is one of many British-era legal legacies written into the Basic Law, which scholars and lawyers say underscore the importance of keeping Hong Kong’s common law system secure under Chinese rule.

    Hong Kong elects a chief executive in March. Lam has not yet indicated whether or not she plans to run for re-election.

    The panel’s deliberations are secret. It is illegal to disclose or try to interfere with their proceedings.

According to the most recent annual reports, the committee received 45 nominations from judicial judges in 2020. It wasn’t clear if any of them were denied.

    Sarony was tapped by the Bar Association to replace veteran human rights barrister Philip Dykes, a former bar chairman, who resigned on Aug. 5 before the end of his term.

    Dykes said he was unable to comment on his resignation.

Sarony, one the most prominent Hong Kong barristers since 1985, is well known for his personal injuries work. Like other barristers, Sarony isn’t considered a partisan figure.

   He also writes columns for the Hong Kong Economic Journal. Recently, he has criticised the Hong Kong government’s changes in legal aid policy and COVID-19 quarantine policies. Others have also criticized the British government’s actions.

    In April he expressed support for barrister and former democratic legislator Margaret Ng after her April 16 conviction for illegal assembly. The sentence she was given was 12-months in length, with a suspended period of 24 months.

Sarony stated that he had little respect for political leaders of any kind, however Margaret was a rara avis: a committed, honest, and dedicated representative of Hong Kong’s people.