【明報專訊】The government

As soon as the ruling was given, many people's attention was on what the government would do next. However, Secretary for Justice Rimsky Yuen (律政司長袁國強) said the government would not seek the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress's (全國人大常務委員會) interpretation of the Basic Law to settle the matter, asking Hong Kong people to ''rest assured''.

Lawmakers

Hong Kong lawmakers have reacted differently to the ruling. Lee Cheuk-yan, Chairman of the Labour Party (工黨主席李卓人), welcomes the ruling, arguing that it will help new immigrants in need. However, Regina Ip of New People's Party (新民黨主席葉劉淑儀) is worried that the ruling will bring about unforeseeable consequences, as did a 2001 decision made by the same court on the case Director of Immigration v. Chong Fung-yuen (莊豐源案), which she claims brought an extra 200,000 mainland children to Hong Kong within 12 years.

Immigrants

Mainland immigrants think that the ruling does them justice. Kong Yunming, the complainant in the case, says she has been discriminated against by the locals since she came to Hong Kong in 2005. She hopes that Hong Kong people will change their way after the ruling. Many immigrants think that they are also Hong Kong people and should not be denied their basic human rights.

Ho Hei-wah, director of the Society for Community Organisation (社協主任何喜華), has been helping new immigrants to assimilate into the community. He regards the ruling as a victory for the rule of law in Hong Kong, saying that not only new immigrants but also Hong Kong as a whole will benefit from it.

Permanent HK residents

Many permanent Hong Kong residents have expressed disappointment at the ruling. Some of them think that the Hong Kong government should be given the right to screen immigrants and ensure that people who have lived in Hong Kong long enough have priority over newcomers.