The two candidates in Hong Kong's leadership battle went head-to-head in a final live televised debate on Thursday, 10 days before the chief executive election.
Beijing-backed Chief Executive Donald Tsang (
They traded barbs in a 90-minute session -- which was this time thrown open to the public -- discussing questions from the 200-strong audience on issues including education, poverty, unemployment, transport and competition law.
In his trademark bowtie, this time in yellow, Tsang -- seen as a shoo-in for the vote decided by 800 mostly pro-Beijing elites on March 25 -- spoke calmly and fluently, while Leong put up a strong fight during the debate.
There was also heated debate on the thorny issue of the timing of the territory's long-promised switch to full democracy -- which has riven the former British colony since it reverted to the Chinese rule in 1997.
"Hong Kong people must be given the opportunity to choose their own chief executive and legislators. This could be made possible without changing the [mini-constitution] Basic Law," said Leong, donning a pink tie to match his campaign colors.
Hong Kong's populace does not have the rights to choose its own leader and China has tight control over its political development.
Half a million people took to the streets in 2003 and 2004 to demand full democracy.
Tsang said the Hong Kongers would need to first gain trust from China.
"Everyone needs to understand that any change in policy ... would need the agreement of the central government," he said.
Leong attacked Tsang for lacking a stance on the issue.
"Up until now, Mr Tsang is standing up here and he still hasn't told us whether he supports universal suffrage or not. As a leader of Hong Kong, he should take some responsibility," Leong said. "I do not underestimate the difficulty in getting the central government to agree to universal suffrage; but as a leader, you shouldn't just listen to Beijing alone. You have to listen to the public and make a push for universal suffrage."
Tsang, a 40-year career civil servant, retaliated by promising a solution to the issue if elected.
Under the British colonial rule, leaders were appointed by the British monarch and since the city's handover of sovereignty to China, they have been selected by the 800-member Election Committee.
Leong is the first challenger to have garnered enough nominations to enter the race.
PHISHING: The con might appear convincing, as the scam e-mails can coincide with genuine messages from Apple saying you have run out of storage For a while you have been getting messages from Apple saying “your iCloud storage is full.” They say you have exceeded your storage plan, so documents are no longer being backed up, and photos you take are not being uploaded. You have been resisting Apple’s efforts to get you to pay a minimum of ￡0.99 (US$1.33) a month for more storage, but it seems that you cannot keep putting off the inevitable: You have received an e-mail which says your iCloud account has been blocked, and your photos and videos would be deleted very soon. To keep them you need
For two decades, researchers observed members of the Ngogo chimpanzee group of Kibale National Park in Uganda spend their days eating fruits and leaves, resting, traveling and grooming in their tropical rainforest abode, but this stable community then fractured and descended into years of deadly violence. The researchers are now describing the first clearly documented example of a group of wild chimpanzees splitting into two separate factions, with one launching a series of coordinated attacks against the other. Adult males and infants were targeted, with 28 deaths. “Biting, pounding the victim with their hands, dragging them, kicking them — mostly adult males,
The Israeli military has demolished entire villages as part of its invasion of south Lebanon, rigging homes with explosives and razing them to the ground in massive remote detonations. The Guardian reviewed three videos posted by the Israeli military and on social media, which showed Israel carrying out mass detonations in the villages of Taybeh, Naqoura and Deir Seryan along the Israel-Lebanon border. Lebanese media has reported more mass detonations in other border villages, but satellite imagery was not readily available to verify these claims. The demolitions came after Israeli Minister of Defense Israel Katz called for the destruction of
SUPERFAN: The Japanese PM played keyboard in a Deep Purple tribute band in middle school and then switched to drums at university, she told the British rock band Legendary British rock band Deep Purple yesterday made Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s day with a brief visit to their high-profile superfan as they returned to the nation they first toured more than half a century ago. Takaichi’s reputation as an amateur drummer, and a fan of hard rock and heavy metal has been well documented, and she has referred to Deep Purple as one of her favorite bands along with the likes of Black Sabbath and Iron Maiden. “You are my god,” a giddy Takaichi said in English to Deep Purple drummer Ian Paice, presenting him with a set of made-in-Japan
RSS