On Sunday, the Election Committee was duly elected in accordance with the new electoral rules. Enlarged and tasked with additional functions, the restructured EC has become a powerful body in the political system of Hong Kong. The restructuring and further empowerment of the EC is the centerpiece in Beijing’s efforts to revamp the electoral system of the special administrative region.
Unsurprisingly, the electoral arrangements for the EC have drawn a lot of local and Western castigation. They deployed Western electoral values and rules as the measuring rod to denigrate the EC elections, decrying, among other things, “democratic retrogression”, “political exclusiveness”, “small-circle election” and “political suppression”. Nevertheless, these critics, in their anti-China fervor, have missed or deliberately ignored the positive political functions of the EC and its electoral rules. In revamping Hong Kong’s electoral system and in enlarging and further empowering the EC, Beijing’s primary objectives have little to do with Hong Kong’s democratic development, at least not at the present stage of Hong Kong’s political development. Instead, Beijing has more important things in mind. The composition of the EC and the way it is elected attest clearly to Beijing’s intentions.
First, the EC is tasked with safeguarding national security. As only patriots are qualified to be candidates in the EC elections, the EC, which will elect the chief executive of the HKSAR and 40 of the 90 members of the Legislative Council, as well as play a role in the nomination of the candidates competing for all the LegCo seats, will be able to ensure that both the executive branch and LegCo of the HKSAR government are controlled by patriots who will assume the duties of protecting national security and preventing Hong Kong from becoming a base of subversion against the nation’s political system.
Second, the EC will help uphold and safeguard the constitutional order of the HKSAR. After Hong Kong’s return to China, a substantial proportion of Hong Kong residents are still unwilling to accept or respect the constitutional order of the HKSAR, which comprises the national Constitution and the Basic Law of the SAR. These anti-China and anti-HKSAR-government elements, in collusion with external forces, were able to gain entry to the HKSAR’s governing system, particularly the legislature, and to undermine, delegitimize and destabilize the constitutional order of the HKSAR. The banishment of these recalcitrant, intransigent and destructive elements from the EC will fortify the HKSAR’s constitutional order.
The restructuring and further empowerment of the Election Committee is the centerpiece in Beijing’s efforts to revamp the electoral system of the special administrative region
Third, a crucial pillar of “one country, two systems” is “patriots administrating Hong Kong”. Only with the patriots in charge will the strategic goals and basic principles of “one country, two systems” be fulfilled. Hong Kong’s anti-China elements and their external political patrons fabricate and assert a different interpretation of the purposes and principles of “one country, two systems”. They not only advocate that Hong Kong is an independent political entity under “one country, two systems”, they have also worked strenuously to turn Hong Kong into an independent nation in substance, if not in name. The coexistence of two conflicting interpretations of “one country, two systems”, with the interpretation of the anti-China elements in a stronger position, is a major factor in the impossibility of “one country, two systems” being implemented in accordance with its original design as charted by Beijing. The deviation of “one country, two systems” from the original design has led to chronic and endless conflict within Hong Kong and confrontation between the anti-China elements and Beijing. The newly elected EC will contribute to the eventual preponderance of the true interpretation of “one country, two systems” and the demise of the fake one, to the benefit of both Hong Kong and the nation. It is expected that the EC members will play an active role in propagating the true version of “one country, two systems” in Hong Kong and in countering any fake interpretation.
Fourth, the EC will allow the central government to hold the HKSAR accountable for its performance in the HKSAR’s governance, development and well-being. It will also make sure that the orders of the central government are faithfully executed by the HKSAR government. As can be clearly seen in the important official policy documents and statements by the national leaders and central government officials, the HKSAR government is expected by Beijing to work hard to promote Hong Kong’s economic development, diversify its industrial structure, resolve its serious and deep-seated social and livelihood problems, and speed up its integration into the country’s overall development framework. It is also urged to practice proactive governance instead of the limited governance from the past. Even though the chief executive of the HKSAR is appointed by the central government, the fact that he/she is elected by the EC means that the EC has an important role to play in monitoring and supervising the HKSAR government. The composition of the EC will enable the central government’s will and goals vis-a-vis the HKSAR government to be realized through it. Accordingly, the EC will assist the central government in making the HKSAR government truly accountable to its superior.
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Fifth, the EC will contribute to executive-led government and effective governance in the HKSAR. Before the revamped electoral system, tension between the legislature and the executive was the norm, as most of the legislators’ base of political support differed from that of the chief executive. What is worse was that anti-China and anti-HKSAR-government legislators always controlled a substantial minority of seats in LegCo, and they were firmly united against the government and were determined to make its life difficult. As the executive did not enjoy stable and reliable majority support in the legislature, effective governance could only be a pipe dream. Under the revamped electoral system, the chief executive will be elected by the EC, and most of the legislators will owe their seats in one way or another to it. Since the EC will become the political base of both the executive and the legislature, its views and expectations will be respected by them. Accordingly, the political gap between the two bodies will narrow substantially. As Beijing wants to see a more amicable and cooperative relationship between the executive and the legislature and as its wishes can be realized through the EC, it is highly likely that, with the staunch support of the legislature, a long-awaited strong and effective government can come into being.
Sixth, the EC will push the HKSAR government to bring about those institutional and policy reforms that are desperately needed to tackle the major developmental and social problems of Hong Kong. A crucial feature of the new EC is that many of the previously underrepresented social sectors are given seats on it, especially labor, the grassroots, small and medium-sized enterprises, traditional patriotic societies, professionals with Chinese mainland backgrounds, etc. The influence and clout of large corporations and tycoons are thus diluted. The new composition of the EC means that the HKSAR government will have to pay more attention to the needs and demands of the less-privileged social sectors, and the latter will in turn provide the needed support to the government in its efforts at resolving the HKSAR’s deep-seated and structural problems through institutional and policy innovations, particularly in overcoming the resistance of the entrenched vested interests in Hong Kong.
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Seventh, if the EC can bring about stronger and more effective governance in Hong Kong and help in curing many of Hong Kong’s “chronic illnesses”, residents’ hopes and confidence in Hong Kong’s future will be greatly enhanced. That will be conducive to Hong Kong’s political stability and the prestige of both the central and HKSAR governments, and will contribute to the continuation of “one country, two systems” after 2047.
Finally, going back to the issue of democratic elections, it is a commonly accepted view among political scientists that for a democracy to be viable and function properly, its elections must be held in a context where the constitutional order is widely accepted, and where all the political elites serve as the upholders and protectors of that order. Only in such circumstances can legitimate popular elections take place, bringing about in turn effective governance and political stability. In the case of Hong Kong, broad-based electoral participation by the elites and the people must take place within the framework of “one country, two systems” and under the conditions that the electoral outcome will not be detrimental to national security, “one country, two systems” and Hong Kong’s prosperity and stability. The HKSAR’s previous electoral system, which enabled the active participation of anti-China elements and foreign hostile forces (through their proxies) in its elections and in its governance, was unviable, malfunctioning and unsustainable. Democratic development on this flawed electoral basis is clearly dangerous, destabilizing and tenuous, and therefore can only be stunted. Beijing’s efforts to revamp Hong Kong’s electoral system have not only rescued “one country, two systems”, but have also put Hong Kong’s democratic development on a more solid foundation. In the future, after the goals of the revamped electoral system have been achieved, the democratic project of the HKSAR can be relaunched under more favorable conditions. Consequently, the revamped electoral system, of which the EC is its centerpiece, will facilitate Hong Kong’s successful democratization in the long run.
The author is professor emeritus of sociology at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, and vice-president of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macao Studies.
The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.