Timetable Set For Hong Kong Election

by Mary Swire, for LawAndTax-News.com, Hong Kong

18 May 2005

The contentious amendment to Hong Kong's electoral law giving a 2-year term to Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa's successor will finally be adopted (presumably) on May 25th, and acting Chief Executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen is expected to announce his bid to become the new chief executive the next day.

Mr Tsang, who is attending the Fortune Global Forum in Beijing has made no comment, but his team is understood to be making preparations for the election campaign, which will last for two weeks from June 3, with the election itself on July 10th.

Other candidates for the Chief Executive post include financial services legislator Chim Pui-chung, who may yet withdraw, and Democratic Party chairman Lee Wing-tat, who has yet to amass the requisite 100 nominations.

The plan for a 2-year term (completing Tung Chee-hwa's term) was accepted by a Legco committee last month despite vociferous protests from Democrats and in the media after Beijing approved a proposal from the Hong Kong administration.

The existing electoral law covered the process for electing the Chief Executive only for the first ten years of Hong Kong's new life as part of China, and opponents of the '2-year' proposal are worried that they are not being told what will happen in 2007.

The government asked the standing committee of China's National People's Congress to rule on the matter. Li Fei, deputy director of the Legislative Affairs Commission of the Standing Committee said: 'The tenure of a new Hong Kong chief executive shall be the remaining part of the former chief executive's five-year tenure when the former retires before full term, according to a draft interpretation of Hong Kong's mini-constitution provisions.' And the Committee agreed with him. The NPC Standing Committee's interpretation said if the election method were to change after 2007, this requirement could also be changed.

Pro-democracy members of Legco said that the wording of the amendment should reflect the NPC's interpretation, so that the new requirement - that a successor to a chief executive who quits should only serve the remainder of his predecessor's term - could be changed after 2007. Leading Democrat Martin Lee Chu-ming said the government wanted to "lie" to the people with an unclear law so it could further its political agenda in the future.

However, Secretary for Constitutional Affairs Stephen Lam Sui-lung said the amendment should not copy entirely the NPC's interpretation, since Hong Kong should use local language in local legislation. He said the amendment adequately reflected the NPC Standing Committee's ruling.

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