Only patriots will administer Hong Kong: China Daily editorial

The 2021 Election Committee Subsector Ordinary Elections staged in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region on Sunday were the first to be held since the electoral system was revamped to ensure "compatriots administer Hong Kong".

The vote, which elected 364 new members for the 13 subsectors of the Election Committee, proceeded smoothly, marking a confident first step for the city in its bid to guarantee it is patriots administering the SAR.

The adjustments to the SAR's electoral system originated from a resolution the National People's Congress, the country's top legislature, adopted in March with the aim of plugging the institutional loopholes in the SAR's election system.

High expectations have been placed on the newly expanded committee, which has swelled from 1,200 seats to 1,500 seats, blocking the channels that might enable radical elements and the proxies of foreign powers to grab the reins of governance in the SAR.

The forming, adopting and implementing of the resolution heeded the calls of the Hong Kong residents who wanted those with the stated aim of stymieing the SAR government prevented from infiltrating or usurping public organs.

Under the guise of "democracy" and "freedom", the avowed intention of these subversives was to infiltrate and control Hong Kong's Legislative Council and government bodies with the intention of engineering a situation in which Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland would "burn together".

Although cleansing its public organs is an overdue action given the prolonged chaos the city has endured, the orderly way in which Sunday's polling was conducted indicates that the SAR will soon sweep away the puppets of foreign interference from its public institutions.

This means that all the civil servants and legislators in Hong Kong, who will now have the SAR's and the nation's best interests at heart, can focus on resolving the city's practical problems and improving resident's livelihoods.

For too long, "democracy" and "freedom" have been privatized and distorted by some foreign powers intent on turning the SAR into a linchpin of their strategy to contain China's rise. The adjustments to Hong Kong's election system have prevented Hong Kong residents from surrendering their fate again to foreign powers.

That being said, along with the National Security Law for Hong Kong and the reforms in the SAR's education system, Sunday's vote was another signal that Hong Kong has been set on a more stable path.

Those who were hoping to use Hong Kong as a weapon in their anti-China crusade should realize that their hopes have been terminally dashed.