Hong Kong crafting ‘patriotic’ oath for local councils; Beijing wants loyalists in charge
Hong Kong’s government is considering a bill that would require district councils to pledge an oath of allegiance to the Chinese-ruled city’s mini-constitution, further stifling democratic opposition.
Hong Kong’s secretary for mainland and constitutional affairs said politicians deemed insincere would be blocked from office. “The law will fulfill the constitutional responsibility of the government,” Eric Tsang said February 22, 2021, releasing details of the bill a day after a People’s Republic of China (PRC) cabinet official said provisions should be made to ensure “patriots” are running Hong Kong.
“You cannot say that you are patriotic but you do not love the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) or you do not respect it — this does not make sense,” Tsang added. “Patriotism is holistic love.”
District councilors suspended from office after failing the loyalty test would be sent to court for formal disqualification and banned from contesting elections for five years.
The bill potentially paves the way for the mass disqualification of pro-democracy politicians who took almost 90% of 452 district council seats in Hong Kong’s 2019 elections, humiliating the pro-Beijing camp. (Pictured: Pro-democracy candidates celebrate their victory in Hong Kong’s 2019 district council elections.)
While district councils decide little beyond community-level issues, such as garbage collection and bus stops, Beijing and Hong Kong authorities are determined that all public institutions in the city must be run by Beijing loyalists.
Xia Baolong, director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the PRC’s State Council, said Hong Kong can only be ruled by “patriots,” a term he said includes people who love the PRC, its constitution and the CCP and excludes anti-China “troublemakers.”
Hong Kong’s Chief Executive Carrie Lam endorsed Beijing’s stance, saying the changes are needed to stop hatred of the PRC and sustain the “one country, two systems” governance model for the Indo-Pacific financial hub.
Hong Kong’s legislative council will debate the bill March 17, 2021.
The PRC’s parliament will convene March 5 and is expected to impose a series of electoral changes on Hong Kong, which critics say would strengthen the authoritarian turn following the imposition of a sweeping national security law in June 2020.
Henry Wong, a pro-democracy councilor from suburban Yuen Long, said he was deciding whether to take the oath under the new law.
“This is just an act to legalize their brutal force in destroying democracy voices,” he said.
The district councils are the only fully democratic institution in Hong Kong. The legislative council is stacked with pro-Beijing figures, while the chief executive is not directly elected. The district councils account for about 10% of a 1,200-member committee that meets every five years to elect the city’s leader. That committee is also stacked with pro-Beijing figures.
IMAGE CREDIT: THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
