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Beijing's plan for 'patriots' to lead Hong Kong 5
`The most important and urgent task to exercise the leadership of patriots is to improve relevant systems, especially the electoral system,` said Ha Bao Long, director of the Hong Kong Affairs Office.
This is considered a powerful speech that helps outline Beijing’s upcoming plans for the Hong Kong special zone.
He affirmed that Beijing will not let the Hong Kong government rewrite the special zone’s laws as previously expected, but will do it itself.
This senior Beijing official did not go into detail about the idea of letting `patriots` run Hong Kong.
`Clearly it is time for the central authorities to take action to resolve the situation, including electoral reform. I can understand that the central government is extremely concerned. They do not want the situation to worsen`
Hong Kong people simultaneously held up their phone lights during a protest against the extradition bill in June 2019.
After Britain returned Hong Kong to China in 1997, the special zone was promised to have a high degree of autonomy, in addition to retaining the economic and judicial system according to the `One country, two countries` model.
The Chinese government is also increasingly wary of increasingly public protests in Hong Kong, blaming what it calls hostile foreign forces that are undermining sovereignty.
These tensions escalated in 2019, when Hong Kongers took to the streets to protest for months, initially against an extradition bill but then with other demands, including universal immigration rights.
According to NYTimes commentators, Beijing’s upcoming major reform plan aims to prevent similar disturbances in the special zone’s electoral system.
Different social groups in Hong Kong, such as bankers, lawyers, and accountants, will vote this year to choose representatives of the Election Commission.
Lau Siu-kai, senior advisor to Chinese leaders on policy with Hong Kong, said the country’s parliament plans to promote reform of the electoral system in the special zone during its annual session in Beijing,
According to Lau, the Chinese parliament will likely establish a group of high-ranking government officials, with legal authority, to investigate every candidate running for public office, thereby determining whether they are genuine or not.
Lau added that the plan would apply to candidates for nearly 2,000 elected positions in Hong Kong, including the Election Commission, legislative council and district councils, and revealed the new election law
Over the past month, Beijing officials and state media channels have broadcast messages calling for a Hong Kong run by `patriots`.
The Hong Kong government yesterday said it would introduce a bill requiring district councilors to swear allegiance, and ban candidates from running for election for five years if they are judged to be insincere.
Some fear China’s next move could further restrict freedoms in Hong Kong.
Before the security law was introduced last year, Beijing generally let Hong Kong’s legislative council draft and promulgate laws governing the special zone.
However, Holden Chow, a pro-Beijing Hong Kong congressman, said that the government’s moves do not reduce the influence of the special zone’s leaders.
`I maintain faith that in the future our role will still be maintained,` he said.