The two main candidates in a Hong Kong legislative race viewed as a referendum on democracy made their final appeals for votes yesterday, a day before one of the most closely watched elections in the territory in recent years.
Anson Chan (
Chan and Ip are competing to fill a seat vacated by a top pro-Beijing politician who died of cancer. The result won't change the balance of power in the legislature, which is controlled by pro-China lawmakers, but the election has shaped into a symbolic showdown on the pace of democratic reform.
Hong Kong's leader is chosen by an 800-member committee loyal to Beijing, and only half of the territory's 60 lawmakers are elected by the populace, with the rest chosen by interest groups.
Beijing's allies in Hong Kong say they support a gradual shift toward democracy, while the opposition demands the swift introduction of direct elections for all political offices.
Former security chief Ip, who gained notoriety for pushing a national security bill that sparked a massive protest in 2003, is backed by Beijing's local allies.
Chan, a rising star under British rule and former No. 2 in the administration, is the pro-democracy camp's preferred candidate, and public opinion polls suggest she is likely to win the vote.
But political analysts say the vote could go in Ip's favor if there is a low turnout on polling day.
Chan urged everyone to vote yesterday.
"I hope [Hong Kong] citizens understand that every one of their votes is a decisive vote," she said.
Politics academic Ma Ngok said the stakes were especially high for the pro-democracy camp because they have defined the election as a referendum on democracy.
The opposition is also desperate to make gains after faring poorly in recent district council elections.
"Chan is the most popular candidate they can find. If they still lose, it represents a big change in public opinion," Ma said.
"It would significantly undercut their mandate or bargaining power in campaigning for direct elections," said Ma, who teaches at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.
The CIA has a message for Chinese government officials worried about their place in Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) government: Come work with us. The agency released two Mandarin-language videos on social media on Thursday inviting disgruntled officials to contact the CIA. The recruitment videos posted on YouTube and X racked up more than 5 million views combined in their first day. The outreach comes as CIA Director John Ratcliffe has vowed to boost the agency’s use of intelligence from human sources and its focus on China, which has recently targeted US officials with its own espionage operations. The videos are “aimed at
STEADFAST FRIEND: The bills encourage increased Taiwan-US engagement and address China’s distortion of UN Resolution 2758 to isolate Taiwan internationally The Presidential Office yesterday thanked the US House of Representatives for unanimously passing two Taiwan-related bills highlighting its solid support for Taiwan’s democracy and global participation, and for deepening bilateral relations. One of the bills, the Taiwan Assurance Implementation Act, requires the US Department of State to periodically review its guidelines for engagement with Taiwan, and report to the US Congress on the guidelines and plans to lift self-imposed limitations on US-Taiwan engagement. The other bill is the Taiwan International Solidarity Act, which clarifies that UN Resolution 2758 does not address the issue of the representation of Taiwan or its people in
US Indo-Pacific Commander Admiral Samuel Paparo on Friday expressed concern over the rate at which China is diversifying its military exercises, the Financial Times (FT) reported on Saturday. “The rates of change on the depth and breadth of their exercises is the one non-linear effect that I’ve seen in the last year that wakes me up at night or keeps me up at night,” Paparo was quoted by FT as saying while attending the annual Sedona Forum at the McCain Institute in Arizona. Paparo also expressed concern over the speed with which China was expanding its military. While the US
SHIFT: Taiwan’s better-than-expected first-quarter GDP and signs of weakness in the US have driven global capital back to emerging markets, the central bank head said The central bank yesterday blamed market speculation for the steep rise in the local currency, and urged exporters and financial institutions to stay calm and stop panic sell-offs to avoid hurting their own profitability. The nation’s top monetary policymaker said that it would step in, if necessary, to maintain order and stability in the foreign exchange market. The remarks came as the NT dollar yesterday closed up NT$0.919 to NT$30.145 against the US dollar in Taipei trading, after rising as high as NT$29.59 in intraday trading. The local currency has surged 5.85 percent against the greenback over the past two sessions, central
RSS