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Former chief secretary Anson Chan (right) said the government's proposal would lead to a "fake election", while former justice secretary Elsie Leung (left) said the government's plan was a reasonable combination of the public's input and Beijing's framework. Photos: David Wong, May Tse

Anson Chan hits out at Hong Kong election plan as Elsie Leung defends it in duelling radio spots

Lai Ying-kit

Former chief secretary Anson Chan Fang On-sang hit out at the government’s electoral reform proposal today, saying the 2017 poll for chief executive that would take place under its guidelines would be a “fake election”.

But even as Chan attacked the plan in an appearance on Commercial Radio, Elsie Leung Oi-sie, vice-chairwoman of the Basic Law Committee, said in an appearance on Metro Radio that the plan was reasonable.

Chan, who is convenor of the think tank 2020, said the proposal followed a rigid framework designed by Beijing and would not give Hongkongers a genuine choice. Beijing’s framework requires that only two or three candidates go to a citywide vote after they gain majority support from a 1,200-strong election committee.

“If Hongkongers are forced to choose unwillingly among two or three candidates cherry-picked by Beijing, this future chief executive will continue to be lacking in public mandate,” Chan said on Commercial Radio today. “This will do nothing to help improve governance which is the main problem faced with Hong Kong.”

Chan also said the fact that the government’s proposal would allow a candidate to win the top job with the support of less than half the city’s voters would further undermine the chief executive’s recognition. The plan stipulates that whichever candidate receives the most votes, regardless of whether that is more than 50 per cent, will win the election.

She urged Hongkongers and lawmakers to reject the proposal, saying if they did so, it could at least provide an opportunity open to restart the five steps for political reform in 2017.

“I personally think that if there is no choice with all candidates being Beijing’s picks, I’d rather give up my vote,” she said. Accepting the plan now “will mean keeping it forever.”

Chan said lawmakers should vote their conscience when contemplating the proposal, which will need the support of two thirds of the Legislative Council to pass.

Leung, meanwhile, said the proposal was reasonable because it reflected voters’ views, as expressed during previous public consultations, and at the same time followed Beijing’s decision on the issue.

Leung, who served as justice secretary alongside Chan under Tung Chee-hwa’s administration between 1997 and 2001, said any changes to the proposal would have to be in line with the framework announced by Beijing in August.

“As for whether the government will make any changes, it’s up for [the government] to decide,” she said. But she predicted that Beijing wouldn’t change its framework.

Leung also said people should not expect a better reform plan if this one was rejected in Legco. But she said if the city did accept the proposal, it could make further changes to refine election methods in the future.

However, Leung said major changes were unlikely.

“I believe there would not be major principal changes. This is because after all the design of our constitutional system has some principles under the Basic Law and these principles cannot be at odds with Beijing’s guiding principle on its policy on Hong Kong, not even after amending the Basic Law,” she said.

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