Can political elections help society move from tearing to consensus?

On December 19, the general election of the Legislative Council is approaching. Candidates frequently attend election forums and put forward proposals and policies to resolve Hong Kong's political dilemma and social conflicts in recent years.

Among them, the current Wong Tai Sin District Councillor, the candidate of the Kowloon Central Constituency, Tan Heung-man, and the three candidates of the functional constituency education, Wen Shi Yong, Lam Yong Shi, and Ding Jianhua, jointly proposed on Tuesday (30th) that the Chief Executive Carrie Lam should consider "Amnesty for the young People", so as to heal the tears in society.

Some candidates pointed out that "young people are our future" and hope that the government will consider amnesty for those convicted of lighter penalties and let the government take the lead in "stretching out an olive branch."

It is certainly not without controversy whether the demonstrators are amnesty, such as whether it is in line with social ethics and so on.

But when this proposal was put forward in the Legislative Council elections, it reminded us to some extent that political elections may have disagreements, but they can also build consensus for society.

In particular, all sectors of society now agree that Hong Kong needs to be peaceful. From breaking to standing, we should once again miss the opportunity to repair the tears and build consensus.

Some candidates even put forward that "young people are our future" and hope that the government will consider amnesty for those convicted of lighter penalties, and that the government will take the lead in "stretching out an olive branch."

Take the positive meaning of the election seriously

Since the government prepared for the general election of the Legislative Council in the middle of this year, some people in society have always viewed the election only from the perspective of political cleanliness.

From the procrastination of some pan-democratic parties on the issue of participating in the election, to some people who advocated "boycott elections" by voting in vain, this election has been trapped in unnecessary ideological disputes.

Discussions about elections often fall into the question of whether the election will be held like the ideal system in the minds of some people, and what negative ways are there to deal with. The cohesion of social consensus has been ignored in daily social discussions.

Recently, candidates for the Legislative Council such as Tan Xiangwen proposed an amnesty.

In fact, as early as 2019, the former Chairman of the Legislative Council Jasper Tsang and a group of social figures also made relevant proposals.

Regardless of whether this approach can mend the social tears, the direction of "Let everyone start again" is what Hong Kong needs.

It has been more than two years since the anti-revision movement in 2019. Although the society has gradually returned to a calm face from the restless social mood, this election should be used as a platform for setting the agenda, allowing the society to find solutions to the dilemma and build consensus. .

Three candidates from the functional constituency education sector, Wen Shiyong, Lin Yongshi, and Ding Jianhua, jointly proposed on Tuesday (30th) that the Chief Executive Carrie Lam should consider "amnesty for young people", so as to heal the tears in society and show goodwill to the society.

(Photo by Zhou Haoyi)

Wong Tai Sin District Councillor Tan Heung-man signed up for direct elections in Kowloon Central.

(Photo by Huang Baoying/Picture of Profile)

The olive branch is not one-way but interactive

Although we all agree that Hong Kong society needs the opportunity to "start anew" and expect the government to extend its olive branch, we cannot but reflect on the fact that repairing the tear itself is an interactive process.

When some people in society still insist on looking at the election with a "confrontational" mentality, instead of turning this election into an opportunity to communicate with the government and build a consensus in society, expect the government to extend an olive branch and let some of the punishments be lighter and convicted The amnesty for those of you will also be a cause for help.

To put it bluntly, politics is always an interactive process, rather than simply insisting on one's own opinions to achieve meaningful results.

Candidates for direct elections to the Legislative Council (Kowloon Central) include Li Huiqiong and Yang Yongjie; candidates for the functional constituency (education sector) include Lin Rifeng and Zhu Guoqiang.

For a detailed list of candidates for the Legislative Council, please refer to the "Hong Kong 01" election website.

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