“Jardine Voices Support for China’s Security Law in Hong Kong”, 3 June 2020

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…

The 187-year-old “hong,” or British trading firm in Hong Kong, is lining up behind legislation that has provoked street protests by pro-democracy supporters, who say the law gives Beijing too much power. Top business leaders including the city’s richest tycoon, Li Ka-shing, have defended Beijing’s move…

Li, founder of retail, telecommunications and ports conglomerate CK Hutchison Holdings Ltd… sent statements to pro-Beijing papers in which he defended China’s right to address its national security concerns. His son Victor Li, who took over his business empire in 2018, also issued a statement expressing hope that the new law can help the city stabilize and recover.

Swire Pacific Ltd., the parent company of Hong Kong-based airline Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd., and Sun Hung Kai Properties Ltd., the city’s largest developer, are also among top companies that have voiced support for the law…

[Also referred to HSBC, Mandarin Oriental and Dairy Farm]