Hong Kong Basic Law Committee member urges middle path deal between different parties
Beijing is likely to accept a compromise between pan-democrats and government-friendly parties, says Basic Law Committee member
Moderate pan-democrats and core government-friendly parties should strike a middle path on universal suffrage with a focus on how to design the procedure for nominating chief executive candidates in the 2017 race, a Basic Law Committee member says.
Barrister Johnny Mok Shiu-luen says if the two sides forge a consensus on the nominating committee, it appears "likely" to him that Beijing will agree to it.
"In my view, if a consensus is to be reached, the biggest chance is ... a middle proposal between the moderate proponents and those so-called conservatives [who argue for 50 per cent member approval]," Mok said in an interview with the South China Morning Post.
Mok is the first person from the prominent 12-member Basic Law Committee to address political reform since the public consultation ended on Saturday.
The Basic Law Committee advises the state legislature on matters relating to the city's mini-constitution.
Mok labelled the "first-past-the-post" mechanism as one "fruitful" focus for future discussion. Under the mechanism, once a cap has been set for the number of chief executive candidates, those who obtain the highest number of nominations can join the race.