Hong Kong SAR, China: Economic and Political Overview
The government answers to the Chief Executive and comprises 15 policy bureaux, each headed by a Secretary. In hierarchical order, the three main government posts are the Chief Secretary (who is second to the Chief Executive), the Financial Secretary and the Secretary for Justice. If the Chief Executive is unable to conduct his functions temporarily, they will be conducted in this order of precedence by the title holders of the main posts.
In addition, the Chief Executive is assisted by an Executive Council or Exco which includes official members (the 15 Secretaries) and non-official members appointed by the Chief Executive selected among personalities from the business world or from civil companies. The Exco serves as the Council of Ministers by being the venue for the formulation of the government's policies. This council is consulted for all important political decisions. It meets once a week, under the chairmanship of the Chief Executive who should specially justify his decisions in case of disagreement with the majority of its members.
The council votes for and amends laws and can also introduce any new proposal. It examines and approves the budget, taxes and public expenditure. It is also responsible for monitoring the conduct of the Chief Executive and ensuring the Government appropriately applies its policy. The absence of political responsibility of the ministers can make the Legislative Council limit the control exercised by this assembly on the executive power.
Members are on the Council for four years. The Government is dependent on parliament's support, which is often given through a vote of confidence. The Chief Executive does have the power to dissolve the Legislative Council, but only under specific circumstances, such as if the LegCo refuses to pass a budget or an important bill. He cannot refuse to sign a bill which has been voted in by two-thirds of the parliament.
The world rankings, published annually, measures violations of press freedom worldwide. It reflects the degree of freedom enjoyed by journalists, the media and digital citizens of each country and the means used by states to respect and uphold this freedom. Finally, a note and a position are assigned to each country. To compile this index, Reporters Without Borders (RWB) prepared a questionnaire incorporating the main criteria (44 in total) to assess the situation of press freedom in a given country. This questionnaire was sent to partner organisations,150 RWB correspondents, journalists, researchers, jurists and human rights activists. It includes every kind of direct attacks against journalists and digital citizens (murders, imprisonment, assault, threats, etc.) or against the media (censorship, confiscation, searches and harassment etc.).
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Latest Update: February 2025