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Hong Kong vetoes 'fake' democracy reforms

Rejection of Beijing proposal leaves political future uncertain
Hong Kong vetoes 'fake' democracy reforms

A pro-democracy supporter takes pictures after a vote outside the city's legislature in Hong Kong on Thursday (AFP Photo/Philippe Lopez)

Published: June 18, 2015 10:08 AM GMT
Updated: June 17, 2015 11:08 PM GMT

Hong Kong’s legislature today vetoed democratic reforms vetted by Beijing, an expected result that leaves the territory’s political future uncertain.

The reforms would have offered five million voters a first-ever chance to decide their chief executive beginning in 2017, but critics say the plan gave Beijing ultimate control to screen candidates sympathetic to its political agenda.

Following a walkout by more than two dozen lawmakers backing the reform package, only eight voted in favor versus 28 against after weeks of bitter feuding that has prompted sharp divisions in Hong Kong.

“I voted against the bill because this is not a real universal suffrage plan. The elected chief executive would only be a puppet with fake legitimacy,” said pro-democrat lawmaker Kwok Ka-ki.

Pro-reform legislators asked for a 15-minute recess to allow time for a sick colleague to arrive to cast his ballot in support, pro-reform leader Tam Yiu-chung told reporters afterwards. But when the speaker rejected a break, the lawmakers walked out en masse, he added.

“It depends whether you believe the walk-out was an accidental incident,” said Charles Mok, a pro-democrat lawmaker.

Some who voted the measures down held yellow umbrellas in the chamber, a symbol of the Occupy Central protests last year, and after the reforms were vetoed 27 Democratic lawmakers unfurled a banner calling for “real universal suffrage”.

The no-vote leaves Hong Kong’s political future uncertain. The territory is now expected to revert to the same panel system to select its next chief executive as pro-reform lawmakers scramble to come up with an alternative alongside a Chinese government that has showed few signs of compromise.

“The result was pretty much as expected and the debate [in the legislature] was only a political show without much meaning,” said Cheng Yu-shek, a professor of political science at City University. “Beijing will definitely strengthen its rule in Hong Kong.”

Leading up to today’s crucial vote, mainland Chinese media warned “radicals” that they risked hijacking the territory’s political future for the sake of “saving face”.

“If reckless actions continue, the Asian financial hub will be dragged into real chaos. It will become a painful memory for Hong Kong,” warned this morning’s edition of the state-run Global Times.

Beijing remains concerned that an open race could lead to an “unpatriotic” Hong Kong leader that calls the Communist Party “dictatorial” and incites “instability” on the mainland, said an editorial in the state-run China Daily ahead of the reform debate.

Rolling opinion polls conducted in Hong Kong during the weeks leading up to the vote offered a confusing portrait of public backing for the reform package.

Although pro-reform groups pointed to results that showed growing support, the surveys by three Hong Kong universities posed different questions and the gap between their findings reached 20 percentage points.

Cardinal John Tong Hon said in a statement after the vote that the outcome would not put an end to divisions in Hong Kong society.

“It will take time for wounds to be healed,” he said in a statement. “Nevertheless, we must spare no effort in addressing the real causes behind this polarized situation, and we must continue to promote democracy, justice and the well-being of the people of Hong Kong.”

The Church and various Christian denominations have been particularly influential on the pan-democrat side, its leaders made up of religious personalities including retired Cardinal Joseph Zen ze-kiun and student activist Joshua Wong, a Protestant.

Chinese officials recently collected information on how religious groups viewed reforms and efforts to heal society, said Ying Fuk-tsang, a professor of culture and religion at Chinese University of Hong Kong.

“In fact, during the Occupy Movement in the last quarter of 2014, officials were already very concerned about the influence of religious leaders, including Cardinal Zen,” he told ucanews.com.

Ying Fuk-tsang noted, however, that there were “polarized views among religious faithful”.

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