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VETERAN RURAL leader Lau Wong-fat, whose strong leadership over the years has led to him being called 'the king of the New Territories', is facing a rebellion by some of his 'subjects'.

Recently the legislator and chairman of the powerful rural group, the Heung Yee Kuk, found himself being compared with Wu Sangui, the infamous Ming dynasty general who betrayed his country.

The comparison was made by fellow indigenous villagers who accuse Mr Lau of betraying them with his proposal to accept a controversial plan for the election of village representatives.

The issue has ignited long-standing tensions between different factions within the Heung Yee Kuk.

Causing the concern is a proposal that two heads be elected for each village. One would be elected by indigenous villagers, those who can trace their male ancestry to the New Territories in 1898. The other would be chosen by all residents, including non-indigenous villagers.

If put into effect, the plan would break with tradition by allowing non-indigenous residents - dubbed 'outsiders' by their indigenous neighbours - to take part in rural elections.

The proposal came after a landmark ruling by the Court of Final Appeal in December last year which declared the current system of confining elections to indigenous villagers unlawful and a breach of the Bill of Rights.

Mr Lau and a number of other Kuk leaders have stressed the 'two-head' system was the only way to maintain the body's legal and political status. It is the sole official advisory body on rural affairs.

They argued that rejecting the proposal, put forward by the Government, could lead to an alternative being adopted which would reduce the Kuk's influence. Failure to agree might also undermine the Kuk's right to select its representatives in the Legislative and District councils.

They do not want to see the Kuk become the same as other, less influential organisations. This, supporters argue, would make it hard for the Kuk to fight for the interests of indigenous villagers.

However, the bid to maintain the Kuk's grip on power has led dozens of village heads at recent meetings to accuse Mr Lau of betraying indigenous villagers. They claim he wants to ensure the Kuk maintains its representative in the Legislative Council so that he can hold on to his safe seat.

Mr Lau has been the chairman of the Kuk since 1980 and its Legco representative since the mid-1980s.

Stephen Tang Lung-wai, a sociology professor at the Chinese University and an expert on New Territories politics, said the Kuk has long been divided into several factions from all over the New Territories. The Kuk's leadership is shared by various village heads.

Mr Lau is from Tuen Mun in the west, his deputy Daniel Lam Wai-keung is from Ping Chau to the south, while another deputy, Pang Hang-yin, hails from Fanling in the northeast. This division of power has remained unchanged for decades.

Mr Lau recently admitted a power struggle was under way.

'There are some people in the New Territories who are hiding their consciences in commenting on this issue . . . maybe they do not like me. Some people might not like me because I have been here for too long. They might not want me to be here for the next term. And they want to be seen as very brave [in speaking out against the two-head system],' he said.

A senior source in the Kuk and a Lau supporter said the opposition mainly comes from rural heads in Yuen Long and Ping Shan. They have joined forces with leaders such as Mr Pang in Fanling and well-known race-horse trainer and Sheung Shui rural committee chairman Brian Kan Ping-chee. They represent about 10 of the 27 rural committees in the Kuk.

'They want Lau to step down in the next election in 2003. The election of village heads will start next year. Now is a good time to launch their campaign,' the source said.

'They are not happy with Lau, as he is always absent from internal meetings between rural committees. And they feel he fails to protect their interests.'

The source said Mr Lau's support in the Kuk, mainly from Tuen Mun, Tsuen Wan and outlying islands, remains strong. 'But we are certainly worried about the situation. We need to contain the issue from exploding further,' he said.

Mr Lam, the Kuk's vice-chairman, declined to comment on the power struggle but warned 'any split within the rural body would undermine the interest of villagers in the end'.

However, Professor Tang said the opposition's intent was not to dethrone Mr Lau.

'There is no other person strong enough to lead the Kuk. Lau has been playing power politics so successfully.

'In addition, the other factions are finding it hard to form a strong alliance. There have always been rumours, before elections, that someone would challenge Lau's leadership. But in the end, no one stood against him.'

Professor Tang said the other leaders only wanted to demonstrate their power.

'They want to tell Lau that he should listen and take care of their interests and that he cannot act on his own,' he said.

The expert noted the prospect of a two-head election system had financial implications for some villagers.

'For example, the indigenous villagers dominate the parking business in villages, as there are no metered parking spaces. If there were two village heads, the one who represents the non-indigenous residents [would] ask the Government for new parking spaces.'

Issues such as this one are at the centre of the conflict between indigenous and non-indigenous villagers, he added.

By contrast, conflicts between rural heads can always be resolved by negotiations. 'Unlike party politics, they have no ideological differences. They can always come to terms.'

Quinton Chan (qchan@scmp.com) is a staff writer for the Post's news desk



Kuk rebels want the 'king' toppled