The patriotic combination of fists for elections at all levels was rapid and rapid, and the first punch they threw at the district council was unexpected. The government took the lead in proposing an amendment to require district councilors to swear an oath of allegiance. Since then, rumors about the DQ red line have spread, initially targeting only the signatories of "No Regrets", but later including candidates participating in the democratic primaries, and then the district councilors who lent their offices as primary voting stations, and finally caused disaster. and the protestors displaying the slogan "Light Time". A sporadic number of MPs fled and were dismissed. It was not until rumors that those who broke the oath would be required to pay back their salaries that mass resignations were triggered. At this moment, the government has not yet shown its sword. After all, if you resign before taking the oath of oath, will you be able to pocket your salary safely during your term? Chief Executive's answer: There is no humane treatment, only legal treatment.
The democrats misjudged the central government
The democrats believe that the central government is advancing step by step, but in fact the results have already been written on the wall. In February, Director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office Xia Baolong proposed that Hong Kong should fully implement the principle of "patriots governing Hong Kong" and judged that the current problem is that anti-China chaos in Hong Kong, "Hong Kong independence" and other radical separatist forces have entered Hong Kong's governance structure, including legislation, through elections. Council, Election Committee and District Council. In conclusion, all measures must be aimed at solving this problem. The central government views elections from the perspective of national security and will never give in in the struggle for governance. It is never a consideration of whether a certain congressman can afford to return more than a million in salary.
District councils are non-governmental organs and rely on the oath-taking ordinance to rectify their problems, while the Legislative Council and the Election Committee start by improving the electoral system. After the restructuring, candidates for the Legislative Council will need to be nominated by the Election Committee, and the qualifications review committee will strictly check the qualifications. False supporters and false loyalists will be excluded. Xia Baolong recently emphasized that "any anti-China and disruptive elements in Hong Kong will never be allowed to sneak into the governance structure of the Special Administrative Region through any channel or method." He first mentioned more than half a year ago that "anti-China and disruptive elements in Hong Kong must not be allowed to enter important positions under any circumstances." The expression "occupied" is almost the same. Some democrats judged that the central government's red line was tightened again, but they continued to misjudge the situation.
A ruler is first a patriot
On the contrary, the latest speech pointed out that this "iron bottom line" also applies to Macau and is more worthy of closer inspection. The nomination period for the Macau Legislative Council has just ended, and several lists of pro-democracy parties have been disqualified from running for election. Only Gao Tianci entered the gate. Macau has demonstrated that under "patriots governing Macau", there is still room for democrats to participate in politics. As Zhang Xiaoming, executive deputy director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office, said, the opposition in Hong Kong cannot be simply equated with the anti-China and disruptive elements in Hong Kong. There are patriots among the pan-democrats, and they can still participate in the governance structure in the future. At present, the Democratic Party and the Hong Kong Association for Democracy and People's Livelihood are becoming increasingly indifferent to running for elections, and it is not impossible for individual members to start anew in order to enter the parliament.
The balance of power of the Election Committee has shifted from the monopoly of the traditional industrial and commercial sectors to favoring the patriotic and Hong Kong-loving camps such as hometown associations, grassroots associations, and national representatives to ensure that "firm patriots with strong governance capabilities" are elected, which also means that Hong Kong's governance A ruler must first be a patriot. Xia Baolong set out five expectations: to be good at fully and accurately implementing the "one country, two systems" policy in the practice of governing Hong Kong, to be good at solving various contradictions and problems faced by Hong Kong's development, to be good at doing practical things for the people, to be good at uniting forces from all aspects, and to be good at uniting forces from all aspects. To perform their duties conscientiously. The Fourth Plenary Session of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China passed the "Decision" two years ago. One of the tasks for Hong Kong is to improve "the system and mechanism for the appointment and removal of the Chief Executive and principal officials." Xia Baolong's five points of "good at" are not only the central government's selection criteria for the next governance team, but also the evaluation criteria for performance during the term.
Ray Poon
Co-Convenor (Research), Path of Democracy
