In first for Macau, election chiefs disqualify 21 opposition members from running in September legislative elections
- Electoral Affairs Commission says 21 candidates failed to meet requirements to pledge allegiance to the special administrative region
- No other details provided, although the politicians can lodge an appeal against the decision
Tong Hio-fong, president of the Electoral Affairs Commission, said on Friday the hopefuls running for the September 12 polls did not meet allegiance requirements.
“There is evidence showing the hopefuls in six electoral lists don’t uphold the Basic Law of Macau or pledge allegiance to the Macau Special Administrative Region,” he said. “Therefore, in accordance with the local electoral laws, these hopefuls don’t have qualifications for running in the election.”
Tong did not provide details on how the disqualified members from six different opposition parties were disloyal, saying the commission had made its analysis and judgment based on information provided by the police and security bureau.
It was the first time since Macau’s handover from Portuguese to Chinese rule in 1999 that direct election hopefuls were disqualified because authorities believed that they could not uphold the city’s mini-constitution or bear allegiance to the special administrative region.