Stakes are high for all in bet on political reform
Any mistake over Hong Kong's future would be a lose-lose situation for the city and China
Hong Kong is on the threshold of a historical turning point. But this turning point could, in a heartbeat, turn into a breaking point.
The city's report on political reform, submitted last week to the National People's Congress Standing Committee, completed the first of a five-step procedure to implement universal suffrage for the 2017 chief executive election.
At the moment, successful implementation looks like wishful thinking.
We are embroiled in an intractable controversy. The proposal for public nomination is ruled out under the Basic Law. It also appears difficult to ensure a fair choice of candidates for voters with no unreasonable restrictions.
So, anxiety over the city's political future hangs over us like the sword of Damocles.
Pessimists tell us failure to introduce universal suffrage spells disaster: social fragmentation, economic stagnation, political polarisation and, generally, chaos.
Whether we share this view, it is in everyone's interest to read Hong Kong correctly. Correct reading of the local situation will have a direct bearing on the city's well-being, its future development and China's international standing.
We can ill afford a mistake on fundamental issues such as universal suffrage.
But reading Hong Kong correctly is like doing an ink-blot test. Different people see different images. Any mistake would come at a price: the stakes are high and we are all stakeholders.
Politics not being a zero-sum game, any careless or obdurate mistake means a lose-lose situation for both the city and China, whose respective fortunes are intertwined.
The question is how to narrow the gap in our disparate aspirations and bridge the bipolar political positions now held by different political parties so as to reach a meaningful consensus over this issue.
By "meaningful", I mean a super-duper majority consensus, because a mere 75 per cent passage through the Legislative Council is dodgy, like scraping through an examination by fluke.
The aim must be to achieve a desired consensus through rounds of talks and negotiations.
We have five weeks before Beijing declares its edict. There is little time to lose in coming up with a consolidated Hong Kong view, even with the help of intermediaries acceptable to all sides.
Managerial ethics require that such talks and negotiations be conducted on an all-inclusive and egalitarian basis. There is no place for pride, the self or the proverbial Chinese "face".
I just hope everyone involved is big enough and wise enough to leave no stones unturned, and to walk an extra mile to generate a meaningful consensus over Hong Kong's first ever election with universal suffrage.
Elizabeth Wong Chien Chi-lien was secretary for health and welfare from 1990 to 1994 and a legislative councillor from 1995 to 1997
