HSBC, Jardine voice support for China’s security law

HSBC Holdings Plc’s top executive in Asia has come out in support of a controversial national security law drafted by China’s central government for Hong Kong.
Bank executive Peter Wong signed a petition in support of China’s proposed security legislation, according to comments posted on the bank’s official WeChat account. The lender reiterates it support for laws that stabilize Hong Kong’s social order and revitalize the economy under the ‘one country, two systems’ principle, the post read.
These are HSBC’s first public comments on the topic after Hong Kong’s former Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying lambasted the global lender over not publicly voicing its support for China’s plan to enact national security legislation in the city.
While HSBC had cited inconsistent activity in the account that it closed down, its motives were questioned at a time when it’s pushing into China and repairing its relationship with Beijing after cooperating in the U.S. probe of Huawei Technologies Co.
Meanwhile, Jardine Matheson Holdings Ltd., one of Hong Kong’s oldest British trading houses, joined major businesses voicing support for a controversial national security law drafted by China’s central government for the city.
“Establishing a legal framework for safeguarding national security is very important and can ensure continued investment in Hong Kong,” the group said in a full-page advertisement in the pro-Beijing newspaper Ta Kung Pao yesterday. “The Jardines Group has roots in Hong Kong and will continue to invest. Its promise to Hong Kong has never changed.” MDT/Agencies