本帖最後由 felicity2010 於 2014-9-10 10:41 AM 編輯 公仔箱論壇. t; ~) C' ~0 K4 X+ {& G' u! ]
0 H1 N7 F* m6 Z) ?/ V# KHong Kong must seize the first chance to elect its own leaders5.39.217.76: [& p- t( `8 M# U! L5 @; w
By C Y Leung
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3 \# D" x( \7 S6 _% M+ \4 `公仔箱論壇Successive governments have been working towards universal suffrage, writes C Y Leung: Z3 G0 o/ [- q$ u6 [/ P
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9 g0 y# w7 }- I' V, |; b3 [TVBNOW 含有熱門話題，最新最快電視，軟體，遊戲，電影，動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。For the first time, all Hong Kong’s permanent residents, including those who are foreign nationals, are being offered the chance to vote directly for their next leader, the chief executive. 5 V; p+ @" i; b
& K& O: f4 ~: K, U% R3 QThe 28British governors who ruled Hong Kong for a total of 155 years before 1997 were dispatched by the British government without any input at all from the Hong Kong people – or the British people, for that matter.TVBNOW 含有熱門話題，最新最快電視，軟體，遊戲，電影，動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。; r% g( ^; z7 I
( P- J8 ]5 Q* W. T# U1 tThe Sino-British Joint Declaration signed in 1984, now cited as the basis of Britain’s legal or moral obligation to Hong Kong, makes no mention of universal suffrage.
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It only states: “The chief executive will be appointed by the Central People’s Government on the basis of the results of elections or consultations to be held locally.”
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Only the Basic Law, promulgated in 1990 by the National People’s Congress, China’s parliament, and implemented in July 1997, states that the ultimate goal is to elect the chief executive by universal suffrage.
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# C) w8 v% c! G* P# U# v% ^tvb now,tvbnow,bttvbSince 1997,chief executives have been chosen by an election committee, the size of which has grown steadily, from 400 in 1996 to 1,200 in 2012. Successive Hong Kong governments, with the full support of Beijing, have been working towards achieving universal suffrage.
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$ N, i9 g1 m" {+ L! q; w3 |4 c公仔箱論壇The question that the Hong Kong people and our legislators need to address now is whether we embrace this opportunity offered by Beijing for major democratic progress, universal suffrage in 2017, or would rather opt for stagnation by retaining the election committee. Do we want to take one step forward or two steps back?TVBNOW 含有熱門話題，最新最快電視，軟體，遊戲，電影，動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。3 U9 T$ R, |# N q( }; O, U) D
% f% [0 F1 [6 T/ J: l7 L3 X' y, xMake no mistake, it will be two steps back if political reform is rejected by legislators unhappy that it does not meet their expectations. We will not only miss an opportunity to elect the chief executive on the basis of one-person,one-vote in 2017, we will also miss the chance to return all members of the Legislative Council (Legco) by universal suffrage in 2020 since that reform is premised on reform of the selection of chief executives.tvb now,tvbnow,bttvb* Y# X! G# x( G P$ p, o$ D8 }
* }0 `' {' F9 pThe next chance for constitutional reform would then be the chief executive election of2022, five years later than what is now on the table. And it would be 2024 at the earliest before any more reform is possible for Legco elections.
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+ }- b: ]$ K4 g8 |" B' `2 ]4 l" xCritics in Hong Kong and abroad believe that Beijing’s framework is too conservative and is not “real democracy”. They claim that the nominating committee will “screen out”candidates from “the pan-democratic” camp. tvb now,tvbnow,bttvb7 K7 Z8 A6 X* x% ~5 x1 ]; |
& B9 T& `8 r* V公仔箱論壇But everyone should be reminded of two basic provisions in the Basic Law: first, nomination of candidates is a matter for the nominating committee only; and second, all successful candidates have to be appointed by the central government of China before taking office. 5.39.217.76- q4 ]6 @0 k4 \+ q* v4 \0 O
These provisions have been in place since 1990, when the Basic Law was promulgated.Appointment by the central government is necessary as Hong Kong, unlike other local democracies, enjoys a high degree of autonomy as a result of additional powers authorised by the central government. The nominating committee will be modelled on the election committee that selected the chief executive in 2012,that is, 1,200 members from four broadly representative sectors, most of them elected by their constituents. / W5 x9 a" b, s3 p
5 O0 S% B0 `1 ^. J; F% T3 mTVBNOW 含有熱門話題，最新最快電視，軟體，遊戲，電影，動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。Five million voters choosing Hong Kong’s next leader will have a profound effect on the political culture of our city. It will empower the chief executive with a mandate not enjoyed by any leader in Hong Kong’s history. It will make the chief executive more accountable to the people of Hong Kong. It will be a fundamental qualitative, as well as quantitative, change.
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) `7 K) J/ t1 ]0 N9 t/ c: v5.39.217.76Another point ignored by some critics is how the nominating committee will be formed,or the way in which it will handle nomination procedures.1 U# v9 Z7 G! o) g) f
This has not even been discussed yet. And no one can be certain who the 1,200 nominating committee members are until after their constituents have voted.. V3 g% H! o! o2 }: S7 p. k
5 O( A/ |% E8 @# P% t; q! KI understand and respect the sincerity of most pan-democratic lawmakers in arguing strongly for their preferred reform model. But I hope that they also embrace this opportunity for 2017. Too much is at stake to walk away. It is time to take this big step forward. I believe this is what Hong Kongers want.
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The writer is the chief executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region |
發表於 2014-9-10 10:34 AM
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