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Hong Kong radicals entering Legco would be ‘normal’, says Beijing official

Official on Hong Kong affairs speaks at closing ceremony of the annual session of the national legislature

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Feng Wei (left) said it would be ‘normal’ for young radicals to enter the Legislative Council, which Regina Ip (right) called a sign of a softening in Beijing’s stance. Photos: Gary Cheung / K. Y. Cheng

A senior mainland official handling Hong Kong affairs has echoed his colleague’s view that it would be normal for several young radicals to win Legislative Council seats in the future.

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Zhou Bo, deputy director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, said in Beijing on Wednesday that, if young people contested elections, “it will be very normal for them to enter the legislature.”

He was responding to question on whether he agreed with the view of another HKMAO deputy director Feng Wei. Zhou, a deputy to the National People’s Congress, made the remarks when he attended the closing ceremony of the annual session of the national legislature.

In an exclusive interview with the South China Morning Post published on Tuesday, Feng said the central government was also analysing the reasons for the rise of radicalism in Hong Kong.

Feng, who is seen as a moderate among mainland officials in charge of Hong Kong affairs, also stressed that advocates of separatism and independence did not represent the mainstream.

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He added Beijing was patient enough to handle Hong Kong affairs.

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