LettersHow can Hong Kong democrats justify serving in an extended Legislative Council term?

Name: China’s top legislative body extends Legco by ‘not less than one year’
Uploaded: 2020-08-20T22:55:19.000Z
Duration: 1 min 25 s
Description: China’s top legislative body extends Legco by ‘not less than one year’

The opposition will need to go beyond vague, empty promises to convince the public that continuing to serve in Legco will add to the quest for greater democracy

2-MIN READ2-MIN

People queue up to vote at a polling station in Tai Po during the pan-democrat primary to select candidates for the Legislative Council elections on July 12. The government later decided to postpone the election. Photo: Felix Wong

Letters

Published: 6:55am, 21 Aug 2020Updated: 6:55am, 21 Aug 2020

Basic Law Committee vice-chairwoman Maria Tam Wai-chu said she was “confident [the opposition] would find a good reason to stay in the chamber” during the extended term of the Legislative Council, and now the self-proclaimed “democrats” have indeed come up with a list of reasons to stay on (“Opposition lawmakers inclined to serve in Legco despite boycott pleas”, August 17). However, virtually all pan-democrats have failed to recognisethe most crucial reason they need – a public mandate.

Incumbents and key opinion leaders can certainly try to make a case and list out the pros and cons of staying on, but it is deplorable that most of them seemed to have made up their minds to endorse the National People’s Congress Standing Committee’s Legco extension way before any poll on public opinion was available.

Equally shameful is the effort to exaggerate their contribution and perpetuate the delusional image of somehow being the last force against a totalitarian regime (“Why traditional pan-democrats have lost credibility”, August 19), disregarding the hundreds of thousands of democratic protesters and supporters who empowered them. This is a sign of utter disrespect and ignorance of the most fundamental principle of democracy.

Democratic Party chairman Wu Chi-wai said his party wanted to use the platform to voice the opposition’s views. I am sorry, but where is your mandate?

01:25

China’s top legislative body extends Legco by ‘not less than one year’

One might also begin to see another reason the pro-establishment camp has retained a solid base of supporters. It is because its members tend to be able to uphold their end of the bargain and stay determined in their goals of preserving stability and ensuring the livelihoods of many.

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;} The opposition will need to go beyond vague, empty promises to convince the public that continuing to serve in Legco will add to the quest for greater democracy

The opposition will need to go beyond vague, empty promises to convince the public that continuing to serve in Legco will add to the quest for greater democracy