HONG KONG – The central government’s latest white paper on national security offers definite guidance for the principles and significance of safeguarding Hong Kong’s national security, benefiting the city’s high-quality development and investor confidence, political heavyweights said on Saturday.

They spoke after attending a high-profile seminar on the gist of the document – four days after it was issued by the State Council’s Information Office.

The paper, entitled Hong Kong: Safeguarding China’s National Security Under the Framework of ‘One Country, Two Systems’, comprises a preface, five main sections and a conclusion, providing a comprehensive and systematic overview of the necessity, legal basis, and outcomes of national security efforts in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

It also maps out future directions for maintaining the SAR’s security and stability.

The SAR government invited leading legal experts from the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong to the seminar at which they elaborated on the document’s core principles and key messages. The event was attended by 150 officials from the city’s executive, legislative and judicial branches.

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Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu emphasized the white paper’s guiding significance for Hong Kong. He said the preface reaffirms the central government’s stance on Hong Kong’s role in safeguarding national security, noting that upholding national sovereignty, security and development interests is the highest principle of the “one country, two systems” framework.

Lee called the timing of the document’s release “critical” and a “practical warning” as it was published the day after former Apple Daily founder Jimmy Lai Chee-ying was jailed for 20 years by Hong Kong’s High Court for violating the HKSAR’s National Security Law.

He said the document is a reminder that Hong Kong’s past political turmoil had stemmed from national security vulnerabilities, and it’s under legal protection that the city has restored order and begun thriving again.

Hong Kong must learn from those lessons and remain vigilant against security risks, he said.

The chief executive added that the white paper further provides a roadmap for advancing “one country, two systems” through robust security, pledging to lead the SAR government in strengthening public education on the document, as well as residents’ national security awareness.

Starry Lee Wai-king, president of the Legislative Council and a member of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, described the seminar as “highly insightful”.

She said the white paper systematically reviews national security challenges Hong Kong has faced, and grounded in facts, while reaffirming the critical importance of completing legislation of Article 23 under the Basic Law to safeguard national security.

The LegCo president noted that the document offers valuable practical guidance for local residents and international observers, while helping to correct past misrepresentations. Its issuance underscores the SAR’s commitment to advancing national security under the rule of law -- a move that will boost investors’ confidence she said.

Jeffrey Lam Kin-fung, a non-official member of the Executive Council, said speakers at the seminar shared their insights, providing a comprehensive review of Hong Kong’s national security work since the city’s return to the motherland in 1997.

He said the social unrest Hong Kong had experienced in recent years serves as a stark reminder that national security is never an abstract concept but is closely intertwined with the daily lives of every resident and the operations of every business.

Lam noted that with the SAR government’s extensive public education and investment promotion efforts in the past few years, the international community has increasingly recognized that Hong Kong is now more stable with strong investor confidence, citing the steady inflow of capital and talent as evidence that stronger legal safeguards for national security have brought greater prosperity and stability.