Hong Kong's Secretary for Security Regina Ip reiterated Friday that human rights and freedoms are protected under the Basic Law and the government will not put forward any proposals that conflict with these rights.

Speaking in response to concerns raised by White House spokesman Ari Fleischer on the proposed anti-subversion law, Ip noted that the White House officials may not fully comprehend the fine details of the proposals, adding that Hong Kong will continue to explain to them.

Ip said that the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government will not put forward any proposals that will undermine the basic human rights and freedoms enjoyed by Hong Kong's residents.

Under Article 23 of the Basic Law, "Hong Kong has a constitutional duty to enact law on our own to protect national security and we are acting entirely within our autonomy," Ip said.

"If you look at the details of our proposals, if you care to look at the fine print, you will find that our proposals are more liberal than a lot of the outdated provisions still on our statutes inherited from the colonial era," she said.

(Xinhua News Agency June 20, 2003)