Political reform to realise direct election is not a priority for Hong Kong, Chief Executive John Lee has said as he prepares to mark his second anniversary in office.
Lee was asked whether he planned to deal with political reform over the next three years of his term as leader during a weekly press briefing on Tuesday.
Before assuming the role on July 1, 2022, Lee said in May he would prioritise tackling housing issues and push forward the legislation of Article 23 – the city’s homegrown security law – during his tenure as chief executive. He added then that political reform was not his priority.
“Now the legislation of Article 23 has been completed and there has been progress in terms of housing policies, what will be your focus in the remainder of your term?” a reporter from i-Cable asked in Cantonese.
“Political reform is nevertheless a goal set by the Basic Law, how will the government handle this issue?” the reporter added, referring to the city’s mini-constitution which took effect on July 1, 1997.
“As I’ve said previously… political reform is not a priority,” Lee responded in Cantonese. “Now we’ve handled the legislation of Article 23 and district governance has been improved, we will next focus on boosting the economy.”
Lee said the government would try to help people buy property or be allocated public housing units as fast as possible.
‘Ultimate aim’ of direct election
The Basic Law stipulates that Hong Kong will ultimately see a reform to its political system that allows residents to select the chief executive and lawmakers by universal suffrage, or direct elections, “with the principle of gradual and orderly progress.”
Since 2004, three government proposals for political reform failed to reach a consensus with the city’s pro-democracy camp. In 2014, Beijing’s decision regarding the 2017 chief executive election sparked discontent among Hongkongers and triggered the Umbrella Movement, a 79-day civil disobedience campaign calling for democratic development.
Following the 2019 protest and unrest, the electoral systems for the chief executive and Legislative Council elections were overhauled. Last year, Lee’s administration initiated changes to the way the city’s District Councils were appointed. Both of these overhauls have substantially reduced the level of democratic representation in Hong Kong’s governance.
Beijing published a white paper titled “Hong Kong: Democratic Progress Under the Framework of One Country, Two Systems” in 2021, which said that pro-democracy forces in Hong Kong had challenged national security and the authority of the central government under the pretext of “democracy.”
The paper stated that there was no “one size fits all” when it came to democratic development, and that Western countries should not impose their standards of democracy on Hong Kong.
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