A leading Hong Kong democrat barred from China may be granted entry as part of a peace deal to end a long-running political feud, an English-language newspaper reported yesterday.
Pro-democracy legislator Martin Lee (
More hardline democrats, like Szeto Wah (
Lee said he had not been approached by mainland officials.
"I have openly stated my dream of going to the mainland. However, it is not worthwhile trying to realize my dream if it will polarize the democrats and Democratic Party," he was quoted as saying.
Lee has been banned from entering China, where his family originated, since he denounced the June 4, 1989, massacre of pro-democracy citizens and students in and around Tiananmen Square.
He has cited the ban as evidence of China's unwillingness to discuss political progress in Hong Kong.
The source told The Standard that Lee was included on the list after he introduced a goodwill motion in the Legislative Council last Wednesday, urging people to work with the government.
If true, the move could signal a thaw in the long conflict between democrats and the city's rulers in Beijing over electoral reforms in the former British colony.
Tensions escalated in April after Beijing rejected public demands for direct elections by 2007, when the next chief executive is set to be be chosen.
Both sides have begun making conciliatory gestures to win over moderate voters ahead of crucial legislative elections later this year.
Democrats fear the conflict will discourage voters from going to the polls on September 12, while China wants to win undecided electors over to pro-Bei-jing parties.
Victory for democrats could result in government gridlock and would cause further image problems for China.
In the latest round of tension-easing, democrats agreed to drop their "give power to the people" slogan at a pro-democracy rally Thursday for fear it would give the impression they supported independence from China.
An unnamed "leading official" of the Chinese representative office in the city welcomed Lee's call for unity and cooperation. He also said his move was positive and good for "social harmony."
Beijing's charm offensive has been partly motivated to defuse expectations for Thursday's July 1 rally, which like last year's anti-Beijing march is expected to attract hundreds of thousands.
As part of this public relations blitz, Tung has promised to listen more to the democracy camp.
Four people jailed in the landmark Hong Kong national security trial of "47 democrats" accused of conspiracy to commit subversion were freed today after more than four years behind bars, the second group to be released in a month. Among those freed was long-time political and LGBTQ activist Jimmy Sham (岑子杰), who also led one of Hong Kong’s largest pro-democracy groups, the Civil Human Rights Front, which disbanded in 2021. "Let me spend some time with my family," Sham said after arriving at his home in the Kowloon district of Jordan. "I don’t know how to plan ahead because, to me, it feels
Poland is set to hold a presidential runoff election today between two candidates offering starkly different visions for the country’s future. The winner would succeed Polish President Andrzej Duda, a conservative who is finishing his second and final term. The outcome would determine whether Poland embraces a nationalist populist trajectory or pivots more fully toward liberal, pro-European policies. An exit poll by Ipsos would be released when polls close today at 9pm local time, with a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points. Final results are expected tomorrow. Whoever wins can be expected to either help or hinder the
North Korea has detained another official over last week’s failed launch of a warship, which damaged the naval destroyer, state media reported yesterday. Pyongyang announced “a serious accident” at Wednesday last week’s launch ceremony, which crushed sections of the bottom of the new destroyer. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un called the mishap a “criminal act caused by absolute carelessness.” Ri Hyong-son, vice department director of the Munitions Industry Department of the Party Central Committee, was summoned and detained on Sunday, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported. He was “greatly responsible for the occurrence of the serious accident,” it said. Ri is the fourth person
The collapse of the Swiss Birch glacier serves as a chilling warning of the escalating dangers faced by communities worldwide living under the shadow of fragile ice, particularly in Asia, experts said. Footage of the collapse on Wednesday showed a huge cloud of ice and rubble hurtling down the mountainside into the hamlet of Blatten. Swiss Development Cooperation disaster risk reduction adviser Ali Neumann said that while the role of climate change in the case of Blatten “still needs to be investigated,” the wider impacts were clear on the cryosphere — the part of the world covered by frozen water. “Climate change and
RSS