Legislators ask chief secretary if he was aware Beijing had already decided
Chief Secretary Donald Tsang Yam-kuen told legislators yesterday he did not know Beijing would rule out universal suffrage when he was appointed to head the government taskforce on constitutional reform in January.
His remarks came after he faced heavy questioning from members of the Legislative Council's constitutional affairs panel.
Mr Tsang was accused of 'misleading' and 'selling out' the public despite his earlier pledge to channel popular demand for full democracy to Beijing.
He was making his first appearance in Legco after the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress last week ruled out universal suffrage in 2007 and 2008.
Pro-democracy legislators questioned why the government maintained that the city's autonomy had not been damaged, despite demands for universal suffrage being curbed by Beijing before formal discussions on political reform began.
Democrat Cheung Man-kwong criticised Mr Tsang for 'selling out' Hong Kong, while his colleague Albert Ho Chun-yan demanded to know whether the three-member taskforce knew in advance universal suffrage had never been an option.
