The present Legislative Council looks very different from what it did two years ago and can be expected to look very different again in a couple of years from now. Its current size is small and while in due course it will be much larger, election candidates will be stringently selected to ensure that only those who can meet certain criteria will serve.
Loosely talking, the word “politics” is associated with formal structures of government but political considerations are a factor in the activities of almost every group of people. Anyone who has had a leadership or management role in any organization has learned about “the politics of reality”: the need to be sensitive not only to practical aspects of agenda items but also to the emotional, to understand who in the group feels what, the depth of that feeling and the influence that may be wielded in both positive and negative directions. The Hong Kong administration is required to be executive-led and while its personnel register significant achievements in carrying forward programs and projects, they are comparatively lacking in the important skills of communication and understanding, or negotiating with political adversaries in practical terms. Some fifty years ago, the City District Officer scheme was introduced, one of the main aims of which was to set up a two-way channel between government and governed. It is reasonable to say that this is failing and while hoping for improvement, alternatives must also be sought.
It is for the Legislative Councilors to fill some of these gaps. Undoubtedly, the tactics of some of the former members of the Council were deeply politicized and counter-productive, resulting in paralysis and failure to advance business. However, the opposite of “chaos” is not “rubber stamp”. The newly composed Legislative Council will not be doing the community any favors if it agrees to everything put forward by the administration without qualification or questioning. On the contrary, it has an important role to consider issues carefully and to act as an intermediary on behalf of those who do not have the privilege of ready access to the seats of power.
The expectation is that a Legislative Councilor will serve the community as a whole with fairness and impartiality as guiding principles
It is the norm for governments to be influenced by the wealthy, the successful and the articulate. It is also natural for social and political groupings and vested interests to strive to protect their own interests. In Hong Kong, for many years a happy coincidence meant that more opportunities for industrialists to get rich also led to promising employment paths and true social mobility while generating bumper tax revenues to be spent on social services, including the public housing program that meant so much to the Hong Kong grassroots. To advance the prosperity of our talented entrepreneurs was genuinely helpful to the wider community. Somehow, though, this has slipped into an assumption that the business sector is entitled to a preeminent role in Hong Kong, including on the legislature. This is not very convincing since it is widely commented that nowadays we are really quite lacking in innovative business leaders, and the ultra-rich who are conscious of their social contract. Furthermore, the jobs being created for Hong Kong workers are generally of the low-skill and low-pay variety in the service sector that offer minimal hope of progression. In order to bring about the just and harmonious society that we would all like to see, the business people in LegCo must learn humility and to sometimes allow their own profit seeking to take a back seat.
There is agreement on all sides that one of the cornerstones of Hong Kong’s success has been the rule of law. Accordingly, one of LegCo members’ most sacred responsibilities is to promote and advance this concept. They must be particularly careful about what they say in this context since their speech within the Chamber is privileged and in other arenas they are looked up to by virtue of their social position. Fundamental principles include the “presumption of innocence”; dislike or disdain for a person who has been arrested or charged cannot edge into calling them guilty, something only to be decided by a properly conducted trial in a court of law. Similarly, judges should be safe from being abused or their verdicts questioned other than through the judiciary’s own well-established processes. Accused or convicted criminals may represent everything that a Councilor despises but society can only be healthy if their rights are conscientiously respected. There are rules to ensure this and LegCo members should take every opportunity to make clear their own respect for the system.
To sum up, the expectation is that a Legislative Councilor will serve the community as a whole with fairness and impartiality as guiding principles. Is this too much to ask? Certainly not; these are simple and straightforward concepts and rigorous self-examination should be enough to confirm that they are realized day by day. Can the current crop of LegCo members be relied upon to put them into practice? Sadly, this is not so certain. The new processes for selection and review will, it is to be hoped, bring about adherence to the highest standards of behavior such as will be necessary to win the trust of the community, which can only rebuild and thrive if the Legislative Council, a fundamental component of our system of governance is working as it should.
The author is a former co-host of RTHK’s Backchat radio program and a former assistant director of Hong Kong’s Social Welfare department. She supports various welfare NGOs.
The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.