Hong Kong district council elections: polling stations to be moved away from trouble-hit universities and extra security deployed
- Electoral watchdog rolls out measures to help elections run as planned but warns it has the power to postpone the polls in the event of unrest
- Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam renews her appeal to protesters to refrain from violence as city remains tense following clashes with police at universities
Polling stations will be moved away from universities and extra security guards hired for Hong Kong’s district council elections on Sunday, as the city remains on edge following a week of anti-government protests that saw campuses transformed into fiery battlefields.
The security measures were among a raft of changes unveiled by Electoral Affairs Commission chief Barnabas Fung Wah on Tuesday as concerns grow about Hong Kong’s ability to hold trouble-free polls after five months of unrest.
The city’s leader, Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, renewed her appeal to protesters to halt the violent tactics so that “just and fair” elections could be staged for the local councils of Hong Kong’s 18 districts.
But the stepped-up security plans have sparked concern among candidates who fear the last-minute “hasty” changes could discourage Hongkongers from heading to the polls.
Fung on Tuesday said he hoped the extra work by the electoral watchdog would ensure the elections went ahead as planned on November 24 amid suggestions that authorities could cancel the exercise.