Public Eye | Referendum versus white paper can only result in zero reform

We're the boss, said the central government with its sudden release of a white paper spelling out its policies for Hong Kong. No, we're the boss, retorted over 700,000 Hongkongers by voting in an unofficial referendum on democracy, condemned as illegal by Beijing. So, who is the real boss? The people showed they were boss in 2003 when half a million marched against the policies of Tung Chee-hwa and the central government. Tung's subsequent resignation was largely seen as being on Beijing's orders. But will Beijing buckle this time by withdrawing or modifying the white paper? Unlikely. The stakes are too high. As Public Eye wrote elsewhere in this paper, we can fight but we won't get what we want. The white paper and the huge "referendum" vote have so worsened mutual mistrust that a political reform deal now looks virtually impossible.

Who will the chief executive be answerable to if, against the odds, we do reach a deal for one person, one vote in 2017 - the voters or the central government? Beijing's white paper states that the central government "issues directives to the Chief Executive". That means Beijing is the boss. What about the people who elect the chief executive? Aren't they the boss? Isn't that what democracy is supposed to mean? What if the people who elected the chief executive don't like a directive from Beijing? Should he then listen to the people who elected him or the central government?