The Role of the Legislative Council · China｜The relationship between executive and legislative -- authoritarian and democratic self-contradiction?

The executive-led political system of the British Hong Kong period was that the governor of Hong Kong concentrated power, and the legislature was almost completely dependent on the executive head, and it was impossible to supervise and balance the executive. Only some directly-elected seats in the Legislative Council have been passed, and a small number of bills involving public policy have been passed.

After the reunification, Hong Kong continued the executive-led model. In principle, the executive, the legislative and the judiciary should check and balance each other and cooperate with each other. However, many people have understood Hong Kong's political system as "separation of three powers" in the past, especially through direct elections. The pan-democratic members of the parliament are more convinced that the parliament is responsible for overseeing the government.

Ji Pengfei, chairman of the Basic Law Drafting Committee, explained to the National People's Congress in 1990, "The relationship between the executive branch and the legislature should be mutually cooperative; in order to maintain Hong Kong's stability and administrative efficiency, the Chief Executive should have real power. , but also subject to constraints.”

However, under the executive-led design, the legislature's constraints on the executive are also limited...

For details, please read "Hong Kong 01" Electronic Weekly Issue 322 (June 20, 2022) "

The role of the Legislative Council・Part 1｜The government's ignorance of the parliament's difficulty in deliberating over epidemic prevention regulationsThe role of the Legislative Council・Middle｜Relationship between the executive and the legislature—authoritarianism and democracy are contradictory?

After the handover, the Basic Law gave the Chief Executive a detached constitutional status and was the "double chief" of the Hong Kong SAR and the Hong Kong SAR government.

(Photo by Lu Yiming)

Even though the powers of Legislative Council members are limited everywhere, the Basic Law still reserves the right to question, pass or veto the legislature, including government proposals such as bills, taxes, public expenditure and budgets, which must be passed by the Legislative Council.

The picture shows Article 73 of the Basic Law.

(Drawing of "Hong Kong 01")

In an increasingly "politicized" parliament, the inherent contradiction between "authoritarian" and "democracy" is deepening.

The pan-democratic members of the "parliamentary minority" have turned to extreme measures to "paralyze" the government because they lack the tools to effectively restrain the executive.

(Photo by Li Zetong)