The New People’s Party is becoming “increasingly obedient towards the China Liaison Office”, says James Tien Pei-chun.
James Tien, Honorary Chairman of the pro-business Liberal Party, said in an interview with a University of Hong Kong student publication that the actions of the New People’s Party, of which his brother Michael Tien Puk-sun was a member, “showed that they have chosen to side with One Country in the One Country Two Systems policy, whereas we [the Liberal Party] still stands on the side of Two Systems.”
In the recent LegCo elections, the Liberal Party’s “wins in the functional constituency seats showed that the business and commercial sector supported our beliefs,” James Tien said. But he said he was disappointed with the results of the directly elected seats, and said that it would be difficult to bridge the gap between pro-establishment and pan-democrat camps when the Liberal Party only has four seats in LegCo.
He said he longs to see whether the social climate would allow moderates to become mainstream again in the coming four years.
After the recent LegCo election, Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee, chair of the New People’s Party, paid the China Liaison Office, the organ of the Beijing government in Hong Kong, a visit after the candidates her party fielded won seats.
