Opinion | Is Beijing's political reform proposal acceptable or not? Let the people speak
Albert Cheng says the government should show it is guided by public opinion by including a referendum of sorts in the next phase of consultation
Hong Kong's long and winding road to greater democracy has apparently ended down a blind alley, after the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress imposed a set of rigid parameters on the chief executive election in 2017.
The nominating method as prescribed by Beijing is so restrictive that the pan-democrats in the legislature have pledged to vote against it en masse. Should that happen, the city will be trapped in a political stalemate for at least another decade.
There is so much at stake that the best way out is for both sides to take a few steps back and let the people decide in the form of a referendum.
The constitutional framework of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region under communist China does not provide for any plebiscite or referendum.
However, if the government really respects the voice of the people, there should be some sort of referendum built into its upcoming public consultation exercise to map out the next steps of reform. Failing that, the official findings of this second round of consultation are bound to be dismissed as unrepresentative.
As shown in past Legislative Council polls, pan-democrats have managed to gain the support of nearly one million voters. Some 800,000 people took part in Occupy Central with Love and Peace's informal referendum. The organiser of this year's July 1 rally estimated that 510,000 people had marched that day for democracy.