The new Secretary for Justice, Paul Lam, has said maintaining and promoting the rule of law will be one of his primary missions, as he assumed his post “to serve Hong Kong with zeal and humility”.

Writing in a new blog for the first time on Sunday, Lam said objective facts have proven that the rule of law in Hong Kong is well-recognised, adding that his own experience gave him full confidence in its effectiveness in the SAR.

“That said, I will guard against complacency, and will not be oblivious to any weakness or shortcoming,” he said.

“I deeply appreciate that there are people who entertain doubts about the rule of law; and some of them even hold very different views from mine. In the hope of enhancing mutual understandings, I am going to listen patiently and carefully to different voices; and at the same time, express my stance concisely.”

Lam said the general public must have a sense of community based on mutual respect, tolerance, willingness to compromise, and self-consciousness to abide by a common set of rules, in order to build a society governed by the rule of law.

“I sincerely invite you all to work together, and to make our home, Hong Kong, a better place,” he wrote.

Lam's deputy, Horace Cheung, also published a blog entry saying he will dedicate himself to helping the justice chief “clear up the confusion”, so that local and international communities will have a better understanding of “the real situation of the city”.