On the afternoon of the 19th, the Legislative Council of the Macao Special Administrative Region held a plenary session to discuss and unanimously pass the "Macao Special Administrative Region Committee for Safeguarding National Security" bill. The Macao SAR Committee for Safeguarding National Security was established by Administrative Regulation No. 22/2018. The bill proposes to abolish the aforementioned administrative regulations, elevate their legal status, and clearly define the responsibilities, composition, and basic system of operation of the Macao SAR Committee for Safeguarding National Security in legal form. Relevant measures will provide the National Security Committee with a more solid legal foundation. The bill will come into effect on the day after its publication in the Macau Special Administrative Region Gazette. The bill is subject to detailed review by the Third Standing Committee of the Legislative Council. During an interview with Xinhua News Agency, the Chairman of the Third Standing Committee, Liang Sunxu, stated that the bill has improved the operational mechanism of the National Security Commission, stipulating that its decisions and opinions cannot be appealed, and optimizing the special licensing system for litigation agents in national security cases. This reflects the high importance that the SAR government attaches to national security, ensuring that the National Security Commission has sufficient legal basis to fulfill its duties and coordinate the work of various departments, thereby more effectively building a solid national security barrier and maintaining the long-term prosperity and stability of the overall social development of the Macao SAR. After the bill was passed, the SAR government stated that safeguarding national sovereignty, security, and development interests is the highest principle of the "One Country, Two Systems" policy and the constitutional responsibility of the Macao SAR. The Macao Special Administrative Region successfully completed local legislation to safeguard national security in 2009, completed the revision of the Law on Safeguarding National Security in 2023, and passed the "Macao Special Administrative Region Commission for Safeguarding National Security" bill, keeping pace with the new trends and requirements of national security in the new era, continuously building a solid legal foundation for safeguarding national security, vividly interpreting the successful practice of the fundamental principle of "patriots governing Macao" in Macao, and reflecting the requirements of comprehensively practicing the overall national security concept. The SAR government stated that it will fully support the Macau SAR Committee for Safeguarding National Security to fulfill its duties in accordance with the law, continuously improve the legal system and enforcement mechanism for safeguarding national security. (New Society)