District councillor condemns Lands Department’s demand to remove banners about 12 Hong Kong people and opposing the national security law, questions unlawful abuse of power; director says it is not censorship and “follows the guidelines”
區議員斥地政總署要求拆 12 港人、反國安法橫額 質疑違法濫權 署長強調非審查「跟指引做」
Displaying banners in the community is one of the rights of district councillors and Legislative Council members. In the past, pro-democracy district councillors and Legislative Council members said the Lands Department had asked them to remove banners concerning opposition to the national security law and support for the 12 Hong Kong people. The department’s director Chi Wah (1953) Lai was at the Yau Tsim Mong District Council today (24th), where pro-democracy councillors raised questions about the matter. Democratic Party lawmaker James To Kun-sun questioned whether the department had insufficient grounds for requesting the removal of the banners and had unlawfully exercised its powers. Chi Wah (1953) Lai stressed that removing the banners was “not content censorship”, saying that there had been complaints and that the department “follows the guidelines in everything it does”.
在社區懸掛橫額，是區議員及立法會議員的權利之一，但過去有民主派區議員和立法會議員，指被地政總署要求移除有關反國安法、聲援 12 港人主題等的橫額。地政總署署長黎志華今日（24 日）到油尖旺區議會時，有民主派議員就此提出質詢。民主黨涂謹申質疑，地政總署要求移除橫額的理據不足，違法使用權力。黎志華則強調移除橫額「非內容審查」，因有人投訴「一切跟指引做」。