Chinese parliament approved Hong Kong electoral reform, and Xi Jinping’s regime may veto candidates

The Chinese parliament on Thursday adopted almost unanimously a Hong Kong electoral system reform which will give Xi Jinping’s regime the veto power over pro-democracy opposition candidates in the legislative elections of the territory.

Ignoring warnings from Western capitals, the 3,000 deputies of the National People’s Congress (NPC) approved a “draft decision on improving the electoral system” in the former British colony.

A round of applause greeted the result of the vote in the huge People’s Palace, seat of Parliament in Beijing. No deputy voted against the text and only one abstained.

Following the announcement of the reform last week, London, but also Washington and Brussels had warned the Chinese regime against a new attack on the autonomy of Hong Kong and what remains of its freedoms.

The proposed change in the appointment of members of the Legislative Council (Legco), Hong Kong’s parliament, comes nearly a year after Beijing imposed a national security law that unleashed an unprecedented crackdown. opposition activists in the Autonomous Territory.

The Communist regime imposed the law following huge 2019 protests against Beijing’s influence in Hong Kong. But the government of Chinese President Xi Jinping could not prevent a local consultation in late 2019 from giving the opposition district councilors a major victory.

“Electoral committee”

After Thursday’s vote, the NPC’s standing committee is expected to be tasked with drafting a bill that will be formally approved by the Chinese parliament before being imposed on Hong Kong.

The text has not been published, but the agency Xinhua explained that it would strengthen the role of the Hong Kong “electoral committee”, a subordinate body to Beijing which already directly appoints half of the Legislative Council deputies.

This mechanism has enabled the Chinese government to obtain favorable majorities for Legco since the return of the territory in 1997.

The electoral committee, which will increase from 1,200 current members to 1,500, will have the ability to select candidates likely to stand for democratic election process, according to the official agency.

The Legco will drop from 70 to 90 members, but the agency did not say whether the electoral committee will now be able to appoint more than half of Hong Kong’s deputies.

Last week, the European Union warned Beijing not to adopt the reform, saying it was ready to “act” in retaliation. For their part, the United States denounced “a direct attack on the autonomy” of the former colony.

The project is “imperative to maintain lasting stability in Hong Kong,” Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Sunday.

Only for “patriots”

When they returned to China, Beijing had guaranteed Hong Kong until 2047 an autonomy and freedoms unknown in the country.

But the Chinese regime and media have been saying for weeks that it is necessary a reform so that only the “patriots” can run the financial metropolis.

The term patriotism means “to love the current People’s Republic of China led by the Chinese Communist Party,” Song Ru’an, vice commissioner of the Chinese Foreign Ministry in Hong Kong, said on Tuesday.

“Patriots must respect the Chinese Communist Party“He added. “We will examine whether the candidates meet these criteria“.

Opposition-hated Hong Kong chief executive Carrie Lam praised the vote by Chinese lawmakers, whom she thanked “with all my heart.”

However, his adviser Bernard Chan, Hong Kong’s deputy in the Chinese parliament, told the AFP that “he would not be surprised if a large part of the opposition were allowed to return” to the benches of Legco.

“If they do not openly promote separatism, then they are eligible”, he assured.

In September 2020, the authorities canceled the elections to renew half of the Legco, citing the situation of the covid-19 pandemic.

On Monday, Lam had hinted that a further postponement of the September elections was likely due to the changes Beijing demanded.

(With information from AFP)

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