Although Hong Kong Chief Donald Tsang (曾蔭權) easily defeated his opponent according to Sunday's poll, the election was nothing more than a farce.
As previously expected, Tsang, with Beijing's blessing, comfortably beat pro-democracy lawmaker Alan Leong (梁家傑) by winning 649 votes from the 800-member election committee, comprised of tycoons and elites. Tsang was reelected as the second chief executive of Hong Kong since the former British colony was returned to China in 1997.
Joseph Cheng (鄭宇碩), a political science professor at the City University of Hong Kong and secretary-general of the Civic Party, said that an electoral system that only empowers an 800-member election committee ensures the elected leader of Hong Kong is merely the favorite of the Beijing government and its plutocrats.
Leong, who belongs to the Civic Party, obtained only 123 votes in the polling.
"Although Leong lost the election, it is an inevitable trend for anyone who wants to become the chief executive of Hong Kong to engage in an election through a legitimate procedure," Cheng said.
Cheng said that members of the pro-democracy camp knew it was possible to win the election under the current "one country, two systems" policy and the reason why they nominated Leong to run in this race was to help build an electoral system that creates a "credible alternative" for citizens.
"We want to make people believe that the election is not just about launching protests or causing conflicts but to create a political platform that offers a choice," Cheng said.
Cheng also said that it was a Beijing strategy to allow more than one candidate to run for the position of Hong Kong chief executive because Beijing knows that it cannot be unbending with the election before 2012.
"Although it was the first time that we had two candidates in the election, which could be viewed as progress, this election is trapped in a bigger birdcage," he said, adding that he believed Tsang would continue to be ambiguous about the timetable for universal suffrage as the policy-making is controlled by Beijing, which might fear democracy is growing too quickly in Hong Kong.
Fung Wai-kwong (馮偉光), a Hong Kong political commentator, said the election was meaningless the people of Hong Kong are not endowed with the most basic yet substantial right -- the vote.
"This election had all the trappings of democracy without the substance of democracy.
"There were debates, campaign trails and campaign rallies but we did not have voting rights. It is the most regrettable part. It is just like a person without soul." Fung said.
Fung also said that China's influence on Hong Kong has increased over the past 10 years, and facing such a circumstance, Hong Kong has taken measures to resist Chinese pressure.
"Hong Kong citizens are like a team playing offense in a soccer game and the values of democracy is the one goal we have to make," he said.
That is why 500,000 people took to the streets on July 1 three years ago to protest the change of Hong Kong's mini-constitution (or Basic Law) and why there are calls for universal suffrage in this election, he said.
Taiwan political commentator Hsu Yung-ming (徐永明) said that a direct election would likely produce a different outcome.
"If Beijing is smart enough, it should grant universal suffrage for Hong Kong as quickly as possible. Judging from Tsang's high approval rating in this election, if Tsang won the election through universal suffrage -- which is a quite possible outcome -- the legitimacy of Tsang, who is strongly backed by Beijing, would enhanced," Hsu said.
In fact, the Basic Law stipulates that the city should eventually be fully democratic but it does not give a timetable.
"But if Beijing continues to delay suffrage -- five years or even longer -- it might cause discontent among Hong Kong people to the point where they elect a candidate who is not subject to Beijing," Hsu said. "At that time Beijing might lose control of Hong Kong."
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