http://www.forbes.com/sites/hengshao/2014/08/31/no-open-election-for-hong-kong-in-2017-beijing-rules/
Heng Shao, Forbes Staff
I cover Chinese business news and social phenomena. FULL BIO
8/31/2014 @ 5:57上午 |83 views
No Open Election For Hong Kong In 2017, Beijing Rules
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The standing committee of the National People’s Congress of China has ruled out open nomination for the election of Hong Kong’s Chief Executive.
A resolution passed this afternoon by the country’s top legislative body stipulates that two to three candidates for the 2017 election will be proposed by a nomination committee, and each candidate must win at least half of the votes from the committee. The general public will then cast votes for the candidates, and winner will be appointed by the Central Government of China.
The size, composition, and method for the formation of the nomination committee shall be determined following the procedures and rules set in the previous election. In 2012, the nomination committee was consisted of 1,200 members from four sectors — business community, professionals, social organizations, and representatives of the government. Members of the first group have often been elected through corporate votes.
The new resolution has rejected calls from Hong Kong’s pan-democratic camp for an open nomination of the candidates. It has also rejected a relatively moderate proposal by Hong Kong 2020, a political group led by former Chief Executive Anson Chan, that the nomination committee be expanded and the percentage of votes required for a candidate be lowered to 10%.
The resolution, although a disappointment to many, is in line with signals that Beijing sent out earlier. Last week, at a talk organized by China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the dean of Tsinghua University Law School Wang Zhenmin remarked that “less perfect universal suffrage is better than no universal suffrage.”
“As long as every person is guaranteed to have the right to vote at the second stage, that is universal suffrage,” said Wang at the time, in response to a comment by councillor Paul Zimmerman questioning the possibility of a “fake democracy”.
A protest is expected to take place tonight at Tamar Park outside of the Chief Executive’s office, organized by Occupy Central for Love and Peace and other organizations that have staunchly advocated for an open election. They have threatened civil disobedience— a massive sit-in that could potentially paralyze Hong Kong’s financial district—if the resolution does not meet their expectations.
