Political situation
Written by: Lin Jian, Peng Zhuowei, Wu Zhuoan, Zhou Lixi
2021-05-26 14:15
The last update date: 2021-05-26 17:07
Beijing took the initiative to reform Hong Kong’s electoral system, and the Legislative Council entered the final straight for deliberation. This afternoon (26th), the second reading of the "Improvement of the Electoral System (Comprehensive Amendment) Bill 2021" resumed.
According to the Legislative Council document, the government has proposed 14 categories of 369 amendments, covering different areas, including increasing the maximum number of members of the Council from 5 to 8, and requiring the Chief Executive to appoint the chairman and 2 to 4 officials In addition to the official members, one to three non-official members must also be appointed.
"Hong Kong 01" will continue to update the key content of the conference.
The Democratic Alliance for Betterment of Hong Kong pointed out that since the opposition's general resignation brought the council back to the people's livelihood, the public regarded them as hateful, "there was damage without construction," and they deplored the Hong Kong government's inability to deal with it. Fortunately, the central government took action.
He pointed out that this time the Election Committee has been reorganized and the method for the election of the Chief Executive has been improved. He criticized some opposition members who went to foreign countries to demand sanctions on Hong Kong. Of course, they did not want to improve the election system because their job was to discredit the government.
Ko Chongsheng emphasized that the Basic Law guarantees that Hong Kong will eventually have universal suffrage. He also pointed out that the expansion of this election committee will be more representative, reflecting the inseparability of the country and Hong Kong as a whole.
He mentioned that the increase in the Legislative Council to 90 seats cannot be described by the opposition as a retrogression, but a gradual and balanced participation.
Ko emphasized that after the establishment of "patriots ruling Hong Kong," the opposition will not be able to enter the political system.
The DAB Ge Peifan expressed support for the draft electoral amendments. She mentioned that Hong Kong has been very chaotic in the past few years. Opposition members will turn against China and the district councils have completely failed. Foreign forces have used Hong Kong to combat development in the Mainland, and speculation has also been held. "35+" In the primary election, fake news and fake news are flying all over the sky, and the central government finally can't bear to take action to set things out anyway, describing that the revision of the electoral system is a sacred needle, and Hong Kong will finally be able to maintain long-term peace and stability.
She pointed out that the status of the Election Committee is very important. The cancellation of district council seats can help depoliticize. The new electoral system can more guarantee "one country, two systems", end political disputes, focus on economic development and improve people's livelihood, and hope that officials can improve conservative and bureaucratic practices.
Ge Peifan said that there is no international standard for democracy. For example, the President of the United States and the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom are not directly elected by one person, one vote. She believes that Western democracy has come to an end. If the central government does not take action, the next Legislative Council will become a stage for the opposition. Normal operation, the opposition believes that in the future there will still be room for elections, and all MPs are patriots.
Chen Keqin said that there were not many things he could do in the past because "a lot of things are holding back"
The DAB Chen Keqin pointed out that he is pleased with the expectation that the regulations will be passed tomorrow, because he is pleased with the change in the electoral system.
He mentioned that when he was interviewed recently when he was a community officer in 1999, he mentioned his original intention to start politics, but he grew up with him, especially when he saw the society being provoked by the opposition two years ago, which made him feel how important social stability is. To emphasize the protection of social prosperity and stability is to protect the livelihood of the citizens.
He mentioned that in the past ten years or so, he found that he was not able to do too much, because there were many things in the parliament that were holding back, and the original intention of the opposition to enter the parliament was to Rab, referring to "people involved in trouble" entering the legislation. The consequences of the meeting are serious, so the previous electoral system is indeed problematic. I believe that the new system will enable more sincere Hong Kong citizens to join the Assembly, so that the Legislative Council can do practical things.
Chen Keqin emphasized that the political system is the power of the central government and has the greatest responsibility for maintaining the Basic Law and constitutional order.
He pointed out that today’s legislators debated earnestly and criticized some opposition parties for describing the reform as an attempt to exclude the opposition and describing the perfect system as a retrogressive system. He clearly expressed his support for the resumption of the second and third readings.
Mai Meijuan said that she had met with some foreign consuls in Hong Kong with opposition lawmakers and refuted their views on the National Security Law at that time.
(Photo by Zheng Zifeng)
Mai Meijuan pointed out that the establishment after the restructuring is more united and will not fight for positions
Mak Meijuan from the Federation of Trade Unions pointed out that on June 12, 2019, she was one of the few MPs who successfully returned to the Legislative Council building. The chaos is vivid, and today's stability is due to the implementation of the National Security Law.
She also mentioned the destruction of the Legislative Council on July 1st of that year. She mentioned that the democratic congressmen lost their stinky water during the parliament, wasting parliamentary time, and then the country had to take action.
Mai Meijuan mentioned that she had met with some foreign consulates in Hong Kong with opposition lawmakers. At that time, she refuted their views on the National Security Law, saying that the Legislative Council simply did not have the freedom to collude with foreign forces, and that the parliament was after the resignation of the pan-democrats. , It's not just a voice.
She also pointed out that after the electoral reform, the establishment has become more united and will not fight for positions.
Rong Haien: Chief Executive needs to be nominated by various electoral committees to avoid interest tilt
In her speech, Rong Haien of the New Democrat Party expressed her support for the draft electoral amendments. She said that she paid special attention to the composition and production method of the election system, the candidate qualification review mechanism, the composition and powers of the qualification review committee, and the prohibition of inciting others to vote in vain.
Rong Haien said that the number of election committees increased from 1,200 to 1,500, which can better reflect the broad representation and the spirit of balanced participation, and better represent the overall interests of Hong Kong. The chief executive candidate must obtain no less than each sector of the election committee. Nominations of 15 people can also avoid the Chief Executive's leaning towards a single group.
She also pointed out that the review of the qualifications of candidates by the qualification review committee is more uniform and more institutionalized, and that it is an important milestone in Hong Kong's electoral system.
Rong Haien said that in the past few years, the speculators have colluded with foreign forces, paralyzed the parliament, and engaged in riots in order to achieve political gains. They have even intensified the implementation of the "35+" primary election, which endangers Hong Kong and national security. He believes that all amendments have their own merits. necessity.
She also mentioned that at the beginning of March, 2.38 million citizens signed up to support the National People's Congress amendment. This shows that it is the public opinion and the long-awaited sword and shield.
Rong Haien said that candidates for the chief executive must obtain no less than 15 nominations from each sector of the Election Committee. This can also prevent the chief executive from leaning towards a single group.
(Photo by Zheng Zifeng)
Lin Jianfeng pointed out that the new seats will give young business people room to discuss politics
According to Pakatan Harapan Lin Jianfeng, today is a historic moment for Hong Kong to achieve good governance and good governance. Many industrial and commercial circles expressed their expectation for approval.
He pointed out that loopholes in the electoral system still exist after the National Security Act. This time, the loopholes are fundamentally plugged, which is necessary to ensure that "patriots govern Hong Kong."
He believes that the arrangement of this amendment in the Legislative Council is conducive to attracting voices from all walks of life, and the newly-added candidacy committee is conducive to preventing anti-China chaos in Hong Kong from entering the governance structure.
He mentioned that the business sector (3) seats and the 15 seats of SMEs on the Election Committee will give young people in the business sector more room for seats and political discussions in the future.
He pointed out that under the anti-amendment incidents and the epidemic, the society has gathered an atmosphere of seeking stability and stop clamoring.
He expressed his hope that the Hong Kong government will fully implement "patriots ruling Hong Kong", especially in civil servants and education. He hopes that the society will return to rationality, solve housing problems, and have an overall view of common development with the country. He hopes that the new Legislative Council will show the new style of meeting. .
Suspected of "democracy regression" Li Huiqiong: Three aspects to improve the quality of democracy
Li Huiqiong, chairman of the DAB, said in a speech that the central government is seeing the increasingly dangerous situation in Hong Kong, and it is only one step away from the "speculators" seizing power and changing the sky. The central government cannot bear to be forced to take action to reorganize the Hong Kong electoral system.
Regarding the alleged restructuring of democracy into retrogression, Li Huiqiong pointed out that the establishment cannot evade this accusation, emphasizing that the restructuring improves the quality of democracy in three aspects, including drawing a clear bottom line, implementing the principle of "patriots ruling Hong Kong", and expanding parliamentary representation. Consider the problem from a national perspective, and solve the problem of Hong Kong independence and other forces infiltrating Parliament.
Some groups have not been absorbed by the Ma Feng Guoji government to add in the future
Ma Fung-kuo, a member of the sports, performing arts, culture and publishing sectors, pointed out that under the current election reform, some representative organizations in the industry have not been absorbed. He hopes that the government can pay more attention to this and add more in the future.
He also pointed out that the upper limit of election expenses for candidates competing for the election of the Election Committee sector is 210,000. He believes that at this moment and another time, candidates in the Election Committee sector must not only win the support of the Election Committee, but also the public’s approval. Increase the spending ceiling.
Pan Zhaoping of the AOL said that the SAR election system is an important part of Hong Kong's political system and has an important influence on the practice of "one country, two systems."
He pointed out that after he noticed that the National People's Congress voted on the election restructuring decision on March 11, Legislative Council Chairman Liang Junyan made a statement, respecting and supporting the decision, and requested the government to submit the bill to the Legislative Council as soon as possible to explain it to the public.
He later mentioned that the Legislative Council’s internal committee agreed to turn the subcommittee into a bills committee to deliberate on the bill. 17 meetings were held. He thanked Liao Changjiang and Zhang Guojun for serving as the chairman and vice chairmen of the Bills Committee. He also thanked the committee for its work and believed in the regulations. Can pass smoothly.
He pointed out that it is normal for society to have different voices, and I believe that in the future there will be different voices in the parliament for the benefit of the public.
The Legislative Council resumes second reading of the draft amendments to elections.
(Photo by Zheng Zifeng)
According to Pakatan Rakyat’s Wu Yongjia’s speech, Panmin has not yet made a decision on whether to run for the Legislative Council election this year. Described very wronged.
He revisited last year’s extension of office, criticizing Panmin for being hysterical at the beginning of the extension, and "throwing away" the decision of whether to extend his term to the polls. However, he finally found that mainstream public opinion did not approve of their extension, but Panmin wanted to reach the extension. For any purpose, find reasons to support your extension.
He believes that Panmin will once again face a historical choice, saying that there is reason to believe that Panmin will repeat the postponement of last year.
He emphasized that there are patriots for the pan-democrats and the opposition, and that the channels for eligible pan-democrats to participate in elections must be smooth.
Zhang Guojun said that it took 1 month to review item by item without sloppy
The DAB Zhang Guojun pointed out that the voices opposed to the government have been referring to the speedy trial of the Legislative Council, which is a rubber stamp. He asked, how can a parliament in the world spend a month reviewing articles one by one, describing it as not a sloppy performance.
He pointed out that when he was the vice chairman of the Bills Committee, he felt that the meeting was far more effective than when the opposition was attacked by the Legislative Council.
As for why the regulations are amended in such a hurry?
Zhang Guojun pointed out that some people in Hong Kong and external forces took the opportunity to provoke, saying that the establishment was unable to go out of the street for a time, and some members' ancestral graves were demolished. He also pointed out that after these people joined the Legislative Council in 2016, they wantonly sabotaged. He mentioned that it dragged the House Committee to elect a chairman. Try to enter the council with "35+".
He believes that if there is no national security law and amendments to the electoral system, once the "35+" comes true, any bill proposed by the government in the future will be vetoed, and "the parliament will become a parliament where the government will not collapse."
And after "35+", if the election committee elects the chief executive by someone who is not patriotic, it may choose a chief executive who does not support the Basic Law.
Zhang Guojun emphasized that after the restructuring, the constitutional arrangements in Hong Kong have been maintained, the relationship between the executive and the legislature has returned to normal, and the deep-seated conflicts in Hong Kong for many years are expected to be addressed and resolved. Therefore, he fully supports the amendment.
Liao Changjiang: The central government took action because some people wanted to seize the power of governance
When reporting on the work of the committee, Bill Liao Changjiang, chairman of the Bills Committee, said that the committee is most concerned about restructuring the electoral committee, including no longer focusing on individual voters. Group voters can reflect the overall interests of Hong Kong.
Liao Changjiang mentioned that he is concerned about whether someone can become a member of the Election Committee if he does not have Chinese nationality or foreign residency. The authorities stated that for broad representation, the members of the Election Committee do not have to be Chinese citizens without foreign residency rights. If it's a patriot.
Liao Changjiang made a personal speech after the report, saying that the Central Government’s efforts to improve the electoral system were based on the original system of Hong Kong and were used by people with ulterior motives as a platform for anti-China and chaos in Hong Kong, in an attempt to dominate the parliament, and to seize the power of governance in Hong Kong, and even with the anti-China chaos. The confluence of Hong Kong forces has contributed to the anti-amendment incident in 2019 and also poses a serious threat to national security.
He pointed out that when the Legislative Council deliberated on the draft, the most important thing was to return to the original aspiration of "one country, two systems" and fully implement the patriots ruling Hong Kong.
He also pointed out that those who criticized the reform as a "democratic regression" often took the lead of the United States and asked whether the people concerned would criticize the ills of the American electoral vote system.
He pointed out that the current restructuring emphasized the importance of equalizing voices and de-radicalization. He emphasized that the restructuring is very important and deserves the support of anyone who is good for Hong Kong.
Lu Weiguo: Facilitate cooperation between the executive and the legislature
According to Pakatan Harapan Chairman Lu Weiguo, the electoral committee has expanded to 1,500 people and joined the five major sectors, including the grassroots, to increase representation, while the Legislative Council has increased to 90 people, covering more representatives from different levels, which is beneficial to the mutual benefit of the executive and legislature. Cooperate, check and balance.
He also pointed out that Hong Kong is about to hold three important elections, time is very tight, and the Legislative Council accepted the Chief Executive’s proposal to first hold a subcommittee discussion, and then transfer to the Bills Committee after the draft is completed. It has held 17 meetings, which can be described as "enough. horsepower".
He said that during the review process, the authorities put forward a number of amendments, believing that it was a concerted effort to make the legislative process smooth. He pointed out that the government should explain in detail the impact of the reform through different channels after the completion of the procedure.
Tian Beichen criticizes the pan-people "Dou Huang, Dou Chong"
Tian Beichen pointed out that today is a very important day in the history of Hong Kong's elections, and hopes to get back on track afterwards.
He said that since he was promoted to the parliament, he found that the opposition had started with a few radical members, and later became more and more aggressive in order to "er like". He then asked the opposition members a year and a half ago whether they still dared to say that they were "just and wrong". ".
He pointed out that under the old system, the pan-minist rivals came from within, so everyone "fighted against each other" and used the metaphor of a ball game to point out that because of their loose credentials, they "played a wave and changed into a kicker", referring to the need for the ball. Take the initiative to deal with the certificate.
He said that he was not worried that he would not be able to win the election after the restructuring. He emphasized that there are more channels to participate in politics. He believes that there are still ways to speak up for the people. Hong Kong has multiple issues such as education. Solving them is much more important than his personal re-election.
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