Hong Kong election: protesters and supporters move battleground to Legislative Council – but will they be blocked?
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Hong Kong election: protesters and supporters move battleground to Legislative Council – but will they be blocked?
Political pundits have suggested that, under the new security law, opposition hopefuls could more easily be denied a chance to run for office. Illustration: Brian Wang
After sweeping district level elections last year, members of Hong Kong’s opposition camp now have their eyes set on the Legislative Council polls slated for September.
With the bloc taking control of 17 out of the 18 local councils, that victory has convinced many that their chances at Legco could be as promising. Their success at the district council elections was attributed to the support of the protest movement.
An earlier check by the Post found that 210 of 392 opposition winners in the district council elections were first-time contenders, a sizeable number of whom either took part in or backed the anti-government protests.
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With these new political aspirants joining their allies in a fight for control over a legislature historically dominated by the pro-establishment camp, the city is bracing for the battleground to shift from the streets to polling stations.
“This is the first time the pro-democracy camp actually stands a chance to win half of the seats in the Legislative Council,” said Democratic Party chairman Wu Chi-wai, who is seeking re-election in the Kowloon East geographical constituency.
Calling it “a fight between the government and its people”, Wu said the administration’s missteps in handling last year’s civil unrest helped fuel the opposition.
© Provided by South China Morning Post Wu Chi-wai, chairman of the Democratic Party, has called the Legislative Council elections a fight between ‘the government and its people’. Photo: Reuters
But some of the camp’s election hopefuls, as well as political observers, have struck a cautious tone over the chances. They believe securing half of the 70 seats could still be a long shot, although the quadrennial polls are expected to be the most intense since the former British colony returned to China in 1997.
But all these outcomes might be moot given mounting talk of elections being postponed by the government. Hong Kong’s leader met her ministers and close advisers on Tuesday to discuss the possibility of postponing the polls, but no decision was reached.
If voters however do still get a chance to cast their ballots, world leaders are also expected to be keeping a close watch. The United States, Australia, the European Union and the United Kingdom have all called for “free and fair” elections and vowed to monitor the polls.
If they are held, voters will be heading to the ballot boxes for the first time since the central government imposed a sweeping national security law on Hong Kong in June, a move that sent Beijing’s ties with Washington and London, among others, into a downward spiral.
Hong Kong national security law full text:
The West is waiting to see whether the law will further curtail political dissent in a city that has a track record of disqualifying or invalidating candidates deemed to be crossing China’s red lines on sovereignty.
In Hong Kong, political pundits have suggested that under the new law, opposition hopefuls could more easily be denied a chance to run for office.
Already, at least 11 opposition figures, including prominent activist Joshua Wong Chi-fung, have received inquiries from election vetting officers. Apart from questions sent in the past, which centred on separatism, some were asked about their trips to the United States last year to lobby for sanctions against the city, a move potentially outlawed by the new legislation.
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The pro-establishment camp is also facing its own unprecedented challenge. After last year’s humiliating defeat, the bloc heads into the elections finding itself for the first time defending many previously uncontested seats in the functional constituencies, or the professional sector electorate. Politicians and commentators said the battle to recover from November’s defeat could linger, as the camp carefully manoeuvred the issue of the national security law.
“Never before have we seen so many seats coming under challenge,” said Ma Ngok, a political scientist at Chinese University. “The seats that warrant an automatic win are a lot fewer than before.”
In the opposition camp alone, 52 candidates threw their hats into the ring for its July primary. Seasoned democrats crossed swords with localist new faces in a raft of debates shown online, before 610,000 residents voted for the best 26 representatives to compete for the 35 seats in the geographical constituencies, and four for the five citywide “super seats”.
Joining the election is the most workable thing I can do before I may possibly be sent to jail later
Localist activist Ventus Lau
It was part of the opposition’s “35-plus” plan to whittle down their list of candidates in the hope of securing at least half of the seats in the legislature. There has been some degree of cross-party coordination in previous elections, but never as elaborate, especially between localist and pan-democrat candidates.
While some politicians from established political parties remain, the primary also returned a new “resistance bloc”, a 15-strong group headed by Wong, with the growing support for localist candidates the result of the increasingly polarised political climate.
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Shunning the conventional wisdom of making pledges on policy improvements and social justice, these new faces, many of whom were only elected as district councillors last year, have vowed to take a more confrontational approach.
They believe vetoing the government’s budget, and other proposals, is the only way to make Beijing agree to their demands, including for democratic reforms.
From street battles to Legco
This new approach has been a dramatic about-face, given many young opposition supporters had previously shunned Legco, seeing it as a rubber stamp body, after the pro-establishment bloc’s 2017 changes to the procedural rule book to curb the opposition’s ability to thwart legislation.
During an anti-government protest on July 1 last year, the legislature’s complex in Admiralty even became a target, with hundreds of radicals breaking into the chamber to spray black paint on the Hong Kong emblem, and leave behind slogans such as: “It was you who taught me that peaceful marches are useless”.
Localist activist Ventus Lau Wing-hong, who has been arrested and charged in connection with the social unrest, said he had exhausted all avenues he could through protests, and saw his bid for a New Territories seat as a new attempt.
“It has come to a point where the price for me to fight on the streets is too high, while the pandemic has also tied our hands. Joining the election is the most workable thing I can do before I may possibly be sent to jail later,” said Lau, who faces a riot charge in connection with the July 1 incident.
© Provided by South China Morning Post Ventus Lau is bidding to win a seat in the New Territories, but faces a rioting charge from an incident last year. Photo: Edward Wong
But to join the race, these hopefuls have to pass a validation test by the government’s returning officers, a group of civil servants working at the district level who are appointed by the Electoral Affairs Commission.
During the last Legco election in 2016, six localist or independent hopefuls were banned from running, including pro-independence activist Edward Leung Tin-kei, mainly because of their separatist stance.
In two subsequent by-elections in 2018, five candidates were excluded, including Lau, and Joshua Wong’s comrade Agnes Chow Ting, as their now-defunct group Demosisto had advocated self-determination. Wong, who hopes to run in Kowloon East in September, was himself subsequently banned from taking part in the district council elections last year.
The introduction of the national security law makes no difference. It galvanises our supporters, and solidifies the opposition
Former secretary for security Regina Ip
Lau Siu-kai, the vice-president of Beijing’s semi-official think tank in the city, the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau Studies, said under the national security law, these hopefuls could find it even harder to be accepted.
“This is not something new, as it came from a piece of interpretation of the Basic Law in 2016,” he said, speaking of the authorities’ power to invalidate or disqualify candidates.
“But the chances (of being disqualified) have gone up a lot since the time when the national security law didn’t exist.”
Lau was referring to a legal interpretation of the Basic Law, the city’s mini-constitution, made by the National People’s Congress Standing Committee concerning how official oaths in Hong Kong should be taken.
That was handed down in 2016 in the middle of a court case filed by former chief executive Leung Chun-ying to unseat two localist lawmaker-elects, Sixtus Baggio Leung Chun-hang and Yau Wai-ching, from Youngspiration. The pair were disqualified because they used “Hong Kong is not China” banners, and what sounded like a -derogatory word for the nation with wartime connotations during their swearing-in ceremony.
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While that interpretation focused mainly on the manner in which an oath should be taken, “sincerely and solemnly”, it nevertheless laid down other principles. The need to bear allegiance to Hong Kong and uphold the Basic Law applied not only to oath-takers, but also those standing for elections, it said. But the national security law went further, Lau said.
On June 30, Hong Kong enacted the law drafted by Beijing targeting four offences: secession, subversion, terrorism and collusion with foreign forces to endanger national security. But the law went on to specify that candidates standing for elections “shall sign a declaration or take an oath” to show their allegiance.
“If you fail to sign a declaration, will it lead to invalidation? The law serves to formalise the arrangements,” Lau said.
Jumping through qualifying hoops
The obstacle course being placed before them is not deterring opposition hopefuls. Many have said they would not sign the declaration and submitted their application without one. Wu is among them, and he said the law gave the government a new tool to suppress dissent. But no one knows when and how it will be used.
“So our mindset should not be trying to dodge bullets just because of this new law,” the Democratic Party chairman said.
Over the weekend, at least 11 opposition hopefuls were grilled over their political stance. In particular, Civic Party leader Alvin Yeung Ngok-kiu and member Dennis Kwok were asked about their earlier visit to the United States to lobby for the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, which was passed last year.
The act allows for economic and diplomatic sanctions against Hong Kong and officials deemed to have undermined the high degree of autonomy the city enjoys from mainland China.
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Under the security law, anyone colluding with foreign forces that results in an overseas country sanctioning, blocking and engaging in hostile activities against the nation, including Hong Kong, commits an offence punishable by up to life imprisonment.
The pair were given a day to answer, with their request for an extension quickly dismissed. On Sunday, they rejected accusations they had demanded sanctions, saying it was a matter only the US administration could decide.
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On the same day, Wong was asked about his previous public statements that he would “request foreign countries to impose sanctions on Hong Kong government officials who were actually using foreign forces to exert pressure on Hong Kong”.
“How could such kind of behaviour fulfil the substantive requirement stated in the nomination form in which you declared that ‘you will uphold the Basic Law and pledge allegiance to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region’?” Alice Choi Man-kwan, an electoral officer, said to him in a letter.
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While Lau, the political commentator, said he believed many opposition hopefuls might end up being prevented from running, Wong, who responded to the electoral officer’s questions on Monday, disagreed.
The activist said the attention the new law had drawn from the international community was unprecedented.
US President Donald Trump took action against Beijing two weeks ago, signing an executive order ending Hong Kong’s preferential trade treatment and enacting a bill that would require sanctions against foreign individuals and banks for contributing to the erosion of its autonomy.
Britain suspended its extradition treaty with Hong Kong last week after citing fears its citizens could be tried by a mainland court. Australia, Canada, and New Zealand followed suit. The US is contemplating a similar arrangement.
Activist Nathan Law Kwun-chung, one of Wong’s closest colleagues, who has left Hong Kong for Britain, met US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo last week while staying in London.
In a 20-minute private exchange, Law warned Beijing was likely to meddle in September’s elections by disqualifying candidates, after its earlier criticism of the opposition camp’s primary.
© Provided by South China Morning Post Nathan Law met US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo in London and warned him about the possibility of Beijing meddling in the Legislative Council elections. Photo: Facebook
Earlier this month, Beijing called the process an “unlawful manipulation” of elections, while Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor accused the opposition of trying to take control of the legislature in order to paralyse the government.
The chief executive said it was a coordinated ploy to subvert state power, which could breach the national security law.
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“When dealing with the election, Beijing will now also have to consider whether there will be backfire from the international community,” Wong said.
Counting the odds
Ma said even if candidates were invalidated, it might not hurt the opposition camp as badly as feared, as voters were likely to vote for their substitutes, as happened in previous elections.
Instead, he said he failed to see a material difference between the coming election and the district council elections when it came to the pro-establishment camp making a comeback. The opposition won 392 of the 452 seats, leaving the pro-establishment camp with just 60 seats, compared to 292 previously.
© Provided by South China Morning Post DAB chairwoman Starry Lee, Gary Chan, and Cheung Hok-ming, a former councillor in the Legislative Council, representing the New Territories West constituency in Sha Tin, show their support as Chan signs up for the Legco election. Photo: May Tse
However, former pro-establishment lawmaker Paul Tse Wai-chun, who is seeking re-election in Kowloon East, believes the damage might not be as great as one may think. While the pro-establishment lost a significant number of seats, it took about 40 per cent of the almost 3 million votes cast, he said, arguing it still had a credible base.
“But of course there are worries,” Tse said, adding the earlier defeat might cause some pro-establishment parties to adopt more conservative strategies.
Ousted lawmaker was denied chance to respond to Basic Law allegations: judge
For example, the camp is sending just two teams to compete in the five super seats, instead of three in the previous election. The 70 seats in Legco are divided between geographical constituencies and functional constituencies.
The former is direct voting by about 4.5 million voters while the functional constituencies are meant for about 250,000 voters in 28 trades and different occupational sectors. And then are the five super seats which are for voters without an occupational sector.
Announcing her candidacy for a super seat on Monday, Starry Lee Wai-king, chairwoman of the largest pro-establishment party, the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, described her campaign as tight and difficult.
Ma said the opposition camps were sending candidates to functional constituencies, traditionally a stronghold for the pro-establishment camp. “They may not win but at least they will put up a fight,” he said.
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In a sign of the deepening rift between the city’s two camps, lawmakers from both sides also refused to pose for the traditional end of term group photograph for the first time since 1997.
Former secretary for security Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee, who is seeking re-election on Hong Kong Island, noted a problem that was becoming clear on her side of the political spectrum.
“Candidates who have a clear political ideology and can tell their voters clearly what they stand for have an advantage,” she said. “There is little space for those who claim to be in the middle.”
That is why Dominic Lee Tsz-king, former Liberal Party district councillor, joined Ip’s New People’s Party in May and will be running in the New Territories East constituency.
“The anti-extradition movement was the final straw that turned me to adopt such a clear-cut position,” Lee said. “The middle-of-the-road approach was based on beliefs that a better relationship between the chief executive and the pan-democrats would lead to smoother governance. But this proved not to be working.”
Lau, from the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau Studies, believes the new law may be able to help the pro-establishment bloc win over more pragmatic voters, although Ip is not so sure.
“The introduction of the national security law makes no difference,” she said. “It galvanises our supporters, and solidifies the opposition.”
This is the second in a series looking at the build-up to the coming Legislative Council elections. Read the first story here
Source: MSN
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