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March 31,2022

Andrew Campbell 

Robert Reed, the Chief Justice of the United Kingdom, announced that he and fellow judge Patrick Hodge would step down as non-permanent judges on the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal (HKCFA). Two British senior judges Lord Robert Reed and Lord Patrick Hodge submitted their resignation on March 29, asserting that the Hong Kong government had discarded values such as political freedom and freedom of expression.

British judges have served in Hong Kong’s judiciary since the territory was returned in 1997. But the British Foreign Office argued that China had utilized the legislation to curtail Hong Kong residents' fundamental rights and freedoms. According to the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, the security law violated the Sino-British Joint Declaration of 1984, which paved the path for the handover.

Judge James Spigelman of Australia resigned in September 2020 due to the adoption of new national security laws by the Chinese government. Former Australian High Court chief justices Murray Gleeson and Robert French, as well as former High Court judge William Gummow, said in a statement that they will remain on the court because of the court's commitment to judicial independence.