A total of 51 out of 117 unaffiliated candidates are linked in some way to pro-establishment groups
JOYCE NG AND JEFFIE LAM
PUBLISHED : Wednesday, 18 November, 2015, 11:53pm
UPDATED : Thursday, 19 November, 2015, 8:45am
Marco Ma Yat-chiu (right) is one of the eight "independents" who failed to declare his ties with the Kowloon Federation of Associations, which has the likes of Basic Law Committee vice-chairwoman Elsie Leung Oi-sie as an honorary president, while Positive Synergy chairman Bunny Chan Chung-bun (left) denies the group is close to Beijing. Photos: K.Y. Cheng, May Tse
Almost half of the self-proclaimed "independents" in the district council elections are linked to pro-establishment groups, the Post has found.
Although the candidates claim those groups are not political bodies, the groups have taken a clear stance on political issues, including taking part in anti-Occupy campaigns and expressing support for the government's political reform package.
A scholar says affiliation with such long-established groups should not be ignored by candidates given their record of mobilising support for pro-Beijing candidates, but with no law to regulate political parties, there is nothing the authorities can do about such omissions.
The Post's check covered 117 candidates who declared themselves to be "independent" or "non-affiliated" in their nomination forms. It did not cover 280 candidates who left a blank in the political affiliation column.
Of the 117 candidates, 51 are in one way or another linked to pro-establishment groups. They may hold office, serve as advisers, or are included in a "recommended candidates list" for members.
Marco Ma Yat-chiu is one of the eight "independents" who failed to declare his ties with the Kowloon Federation of Associations, which has the likes of Basic Law Committee vice-chairwoman Elsie Leung Oi-sie as an honorary president. He is an executive member in charge of recreational affairs.
"I want to be a true pro-establishment candidate in name but no party invited me," said Ma, 38, who is seeking another term in Kwun Tong's Hong Lok constituency.
He did not declare his affiliation because the federation "was not a political party" and his role was minimal, he said.
Other such organisations include the Hong Kong Island Federation, which stresses the principle of "love the country and love Hong Kong", and the New Territories Association of Societies. Eight and six independent candidates are related to these groups respectively.
Positive Synergy, a younger group that was set up in 2013, held a swearing-in ceremony for the 22 candidates in Kwun Tong district last month. But at least three of them call themselves independent and others simply left a blank in the affiliation column in their nomination form.
The group prompted questions about its political stance after an official from Beijing's liaison office attended its launch ceremony. Its secretary is Wong Chun-ping, a former liaison office official who became a district councillor.
But Positive Synergy chairman Bunny Chan Chung-bun denies the group is close to Beijing. "We get together but we are not a party. We are just a platform for independents to exchange views," said Chan, a deputy to the National People's Congress.
Meanwhile, three non-affiliated candidates are provincial or municipal deputies to the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference. None of the four - Paul Law Siu-hung and Patrick Ko Hiu-wing running in Yau Tsim Mong district and Roy Ting Chi-wai in Wong Tai Sin - could be reached for comment.
Joseph Lam Chok, who is said to be dating current Miss Hong Kong Louisa Mak Ming-sze, is among the dozens of names included in the list of "recommended candidates" of the Federation of Fujian Associations, which was leaked to the media last week.
Lam, vying for the seat in Wong Tai Sin's Lung Sing constituency, denied suggestions that he was an "invisible leftist". "I have asked my volunteers and supporters - none say they sought the Fujian group's support. I don't know what happened."
Just as such candidates argue that some Occupy protesters did not declare their stance, Edward Lau Wai-tak, an Occupy activist vying for the seat in Central and Western District's University constituency, said he did not state his affiliation to Island West Dynamic Movement, which he founded with two other candidates, as he considered himself to be independent.
"Our group is self-funded and subject to no party's control," he said.
Dixon Sing Ming, a political scientist at the University of Science and Technology, said affiliation to pro-Beijing groups was key information that should not be concealed from voters. "A lot of these societies were set up after the handover to mobilise support for pro-establishment parties in elections," he said.
http://m.scmp.com/news/article/1880312/many-independent-hong-kong-district-council-candidates-hide-their-true-colours
