ExplainerHong Kong patriots: here’s what we know, and don’t know on how far Beijing will go in reforming city’s politics
- The central government is still in ‘listening mode’, according to sources, and it is weighing options such as a complete revamp of city’s electoral systems
- While no timetable is in place, three elections loom in the next 12 months, and only those deemed ‘patriots’ will be taking part
Beijing has dropped yet another political bombshell by declaring that Hong Kong must drastically revamp its electoral systems to ensure only “patriots” hold key positions in all three branches of government as well as the city’s statutory bodies.
But Xia Baolong, director of the State Council’s Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, who laid down the principles and directives in a closed-door meeting on Monday, stopped short of spelling out the plan’s concrete elements, raising more questions than answers.
Here is what we know – and do not know – so far about what could be the biggest overhaul of the Hong Kong electoral system in its brief history.
Who are patriots and who are not?
What we know:
Xia made it clear in his speech that effective measures must be put in place to prevent “unpatriotic” figures from taking up positions of political power in Hong Kong.
These people, he said, included those who favoured “laam caau” – the “mutual destruction” strategy that sprang out of the 2019 anti-government protests, attacked Beijing in a “hysterical manner”, advocated independence, smeared Hong Kong in the international community, called for foreign sanctions or endangered national security.