Meaning of National Security

The meaning of a state:According to the theory of public international law, a state has four essential elements, namely the people, territory (including territorial lands, territorial waters and territorial airspace etc.), sovereignty and regime.

The People's Republic of China has been established since 1949. Hong Kong has been part of the territory of China since ancient times (Preamble to the Basic Law). The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region is an inalienable part of the People's Republic of China (Article 1 of the Basic Law) and shall be a local administrative region of the People's Republic of China, which shall enjoy a high degree of autonomy and come directly under the Central People's Government (Article 12 of the Basic Law).

The meaning of national security: National security means a status in which the regime, sovereignty, unity, territorial integrity, welfare of the people, sustainable economic and social development, and other major interests of the state are relatively not faced with any danger and not threatened internally or externally, and the capability to maintain a sustained security status (Article 2 of the National Security Law of the People's Republic of China).

• 1. Safeguarding the security of core and major interests of the state, covering the state's regime, sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity, welfare of the people, and sustainable economic and social development;
• 2. National security means a status without external threat and infringement and without internal unrest and disorder;
• 3. Factors relating to national security are relative and dynamic. In the real world, there is no absolute national security. Risk factors always exist. We should stay vigilant at all times; and
• 4. National security involves enhancing the capability to guarantee a sustained safe condition, constantly strengthening the building of the capability to safeguard national security, and guarding against and resolving risk factors and actual perils.

The principle of national security is to accord top priority to national interests. National security concerns the welfare of the 1.4 billion people of the whole country and is an important cornerstone of its stability. People live in peace when the country is prosperous, and the country comes before the family. It is definitely the most fundamental and down-to-earth aspiration shared among people in the whole world that their countries see peaceful development, their societies enjoy prosperity and stability, and they lead a peaceful and fulfilling life. The fundamental interests of all people hinge on national security. If the skin is gone, what can the hair adhere to? When the country's core interests such as its territory, sovereignty and regime are at risk, national security will be threatened and there will be no security for the people. It is the basic responsibility of every Hong Kong citizen to safeguard national security.

The Central People's Government has an overarching responsibility for national security affairs relating to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. It is the duty of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region under the Constitution to safeguard national security and the Region shall perform the duty accordingly (Articles 3(1) and (2) of the Hong Kong National Security Law). It is the common responsibility of all the people of China, including the people of Hong Kong, to safeguard the sovereignty, unification and territorial integrity of the People's Republic of China (Article 6(1) of the Hong Kong National Security Law).