'No room for concession' on fighting subversion in HK

The main problem existing in Hong Kong is of a political nature concerned with battling against the seizure of power, subversion and infiltration, Zhang Xiaoming, deputy director of the State Council's Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office, said on Friday.

Zhang made the remark at a news conference one day after the National People's Congress, China's top legislature, adopted a decision to improve Hong Kong's electoral system during its fourth annual session that closed on Thursday.

The decision will improve the current electoral system and also authorizes the NPC Standing Committee to amend Annex I and Annex II to the Basic Law which clarify the method of the selection of the chief executive and the formation of the Legislative Council.

He said the passage of the decision is a fundamental solution to maintain political stability and governance security in Hong Kong. The chaos since 2019 has demonstrated that the main problem in Hong Kong is not a question of whether the electoral system should be democratic or whether democratic progress should be faster or slower.

"Instead, it involves counter-subversion and counter-infiltration and we leave no room for concession on this issue," he said.

Zhang Yong, deputy director of the Legislative Affairs Commission of the NPC Standing Committee, said the decision has a solid constitutional basis.

Under the principle of "one country, two systems", the Constitution and the Hong Kong Basic Law together form the constitutional basis of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, requiring all systems and mechanisms practiced in the city to conform to the requirements of this basis.

"If this constitutional basis is violated or even undermined, the relevant systems and mechanisms must be revised and improved," he said. He added that the decision has an unquestionable legal effect and the NPC Standing Committee will conduct the amendment strictly in accordance with the decision.

Zhang Xiaoming said the improved electoral system of Hong Kong does not mean ruling out the possibility of patriotic opposition entering the administrative structure.

He stressed that the improvements aim to screen anti-China disrupters out of the SAR's governance team. However, patriots in the SAR's opposition camp could still stand for election and be elected according to the law.

He added that after the improvements, the Legislative Council will be more broadly representative. There would still be different voices in the legislature, including criticism of the government. Yet there would be no room for improper behavior during the oath-taking process, or rampant filibustering actions, which even involved physical conflicts.

One of the electoral reform methods stipulated by the decision includes increasing the number of Election Committee seats from current 1,200 to 1,500 and granting it more powers from being mainly responsible for electing the chief executive to nominating and electing both the chief executive and members of the city's Legislative Council.

Deng Zhonghua, deputy director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office, said the new arrangement will help establish a legislature with broader representation and break the limitation of vested interests in the current legislature.

It could also supplement the inadequacies of the body's current election mode based on functional constituencies and geographical constituencies. These will enable the legislature to better represent the overall interests of Hong Kong society, facilitate smooth communication between the SAR's executive and legislative bodies, and consolidate executive-led administration as stipulated under the Basic Law, he said.

The decision is another major step to improve Hong Kong's legal and political systems followed by the Law of the People's Republic of China on Safeguarding National Security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, which was passed by the NPC in June 2020.