#LegCo #DQ #NoElection #ProvisionalCouncil #BeijingIntervention

Pro-democracy Lawmakers Eddie Chu and Raymond Chan Lean on Leaving LegCo to Denounce Beijing's Political Arrangement

Source: Stand News #Aug18

Read Part 1:
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/24384

Part 2:
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/24385

Part 3:
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/24386

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#LegCo #DQ #NoElection #ProvisionalCouncil #BeijingIntervention

Pro-democracy Lawmakers Eddie Chu and Raymond Chan Lean on Leaving LegCo to Denounce Beijing's Political Arrangement: Consensus Via Polls

Part 1/3

While the Hong Kong government, backed by Beijing, postponed the #LegCo Election for a year, it has sparked intense debate among citizens whether incumbent pro-democracy legislators should stay for an extension of the Sixth Legislative Council under the current "arrangement" approved by Beijing.

The Democracy Camp Caucus had released a statement on Monday, stating that the "majority" of legislators lean towards staying for the extension. But Raymond Chan of People Power and Eddie Chu of Council Front have made an opposite stance, advocating for the pro-democracy camp to boycott the upcoming "Provisional Legislative Council".

Chu had stated in an interview that he believes that the CCP intends to make the pro-democracy camp "painlessly accept their political appointments" while destroying the results of the pro-democracy primaries. He stated that this is the second time since 1997 for Hong Kong to have an appointed parliament, that as Beijing is changing Hong Kong society through the National Security Law and other laws, pro-democracy legislators have a single chance and the responsibility to make a strong political stance.

As to rumours regarding Chu's earlier supposed stance of staying, Chu declined to comment on the issue, while emphasising that he wished for there to be a "trustworthy platform" for the pro-democracy camp to decide whether to leave or stay.

Chan explained that leaving sends the message of opposing Chief Executive Carrie Lam's decision to delay the elections using the epidemic as an excuse and the NPC's decision, stating that, "The NPC represents Beijing's wishes, not the will of Hongkongers." He wished the pro-democracy camp could "come and go together", but stated that "it's okay if they can't manage it."

Chu and Chan met with journalists separately on Tuesday, accepting interviews to explain their stance. Chu stated the pro-democracy primaries were an important milestone, that for pro-democracy supporters, winners of the primaries "were supposed to enter the Legislative Council". He continued that as the spotlight fell upon the four disqualified councillors and their extension of service as Beijing announced their decision to extend the Sixth Legislative Council, "it made everyone ignore the heart of the problem: that this is a de facto appointment of service", stating that the pro-democracy camp's decision to accept the "appointment" would mean sabotaging the primaries results.

Chu stated that Beijing is "altering" Hong Kong society after the establishment of the National Security Law, arresting Jimmy Lai and Agnes Chow, while giving the Legislative Council preferential treatment, "as if they are welcoming us in open arms", making him more vigilant, as the Legislative Council is one of the few places the pro-democracy camp could publicly protest the government's political decision.

Continue Reading
Part 2:
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/24385

Part 3:
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/24386

Source: Stand News #Aug18
#EddieChu #RayChan

#LegCo #DQ #NoElection #ProvisionalCouncil #BeijingIntervention

Pro-democracy Lawmakers Eddie Chu and Raymond Chan Lean on Leaving LegCo to Denounce Beijing's Political Arrangement

Part 2/3
Eddie Chu: Actively Attempting to Initiate Discussions

There had been recent rumours regarding pro-democracy lawmaker Eddie Chu's earlier stance of staying in the Legislative Council.

Chu denied the rumours twice during the interview, emphasising his efforts at initiating discussions on all sides and establishing a trustworthy platform for deciding the pro-democracy camp's place in the Legislative Council, stating that his previous stances "isn't important".

Chu emphasised that he was not attempting to sabotage the unity of the pro-democracy camp, instead stating that Beijing's decision to "appoint" the Legislative Council was the true sabotager.

He called for pro-democracy legislators and legislative candidates that won the primaries to form a "working platform" in the following two weeks for them to explain their stance, and to hold a trustworthy poll "to show the public opinion for all to see". He stated that this could make the pro-democracy legislators' actions have legitimacy whether or not they decide to leave or stay while undoing the CCP's sabotage.

But since Chu had expressed his stance on boycotting the "Provisional Legislative Council", and several pro-democratic parties' supposed stance of staying, debates sparked as to their decisions, with opinions for boycotting the extension of the Legislative Council bombarding pro-democratic legislators. Sunny Cheung, seen by many to be an ally of Chu, stated that "If the pan-democracy camp continues to be stubborn, they would be the ones who sabotage the democracy movement,"; simultaneously in Chu's declaratory article, he stated that was the pro-democracy camp to ignore the lack of public authorisation and chose to stay, they would reduce to "political retainers of the CCP who lack dignity".

When confronted with the possibility of the condemning damaging the prospects of reaching a consensus, Chu compared the situation during the primaries. "Condemnations are common," stating that while emotional attacks are meaningless, politicians should not be afraid of "such squabblings", as "many more negatives would arise" if people avoided discussions.

Despite his current stance, Chu believed that staying has its advantages, but stated that some Hongkongers had coursed away from full parliamentary resistance from last year, "Don't think that you can block one evil law at a time. When the situation becomes dire enough, people won't care, or may even welcome even worse situations."

Continue Reading Part 3:
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/24386

Source: Stand News #Aug18
#EddieChu #RayChan

#LegCo #DQ #NoElection #ProvisionalCouncil #BeijingIntervention

Pro-democracy Lawmakers Eddie Chu and Raymond Chan Lean on Leaving LegCo to Denounce Beijing's Political Arrangement

Part 3/3

Wishing Legislators Would Prove Their Decisions With Action, Raymond Chan: "Hadn't Done Their Best Last Year."

Pro-democracy lawmaker Raymond Chan, of People Power, agreed that the pro-democracy camp should decide with a referendum or a poll, stating that legislators should not stay without public authorisation.

"Although a lack of elections means a lack of public authorisation, they should only be allowed to stay if the public supports their decision." He continued that although he and
Pro-democracy lawmaker
Eddie Chu had suggested random polls around Hong Kong, not many people within the pro-democracy camp found interest with the suggestion.

When confronted with the dilemma of whether those who choose to stay could use to "Provisional Legislative Council"s power well", Chan expressed his concern, as he "[doesn't] know whether they are up to the task". He stated that he did not believe in denigrations from some members of the public, such as accusations that claimed "greediness" as the reason behind their stay. But he stated that those who lean towards staying should prove their decisions with actions, not repeating mantras such as "fight 'til the end".

Chan emphasised that he had no intention of leaving people out to die or state that "only by fighting or landing in prison would it justify their purpose". But he recalled that some legislators had not "did their best" during their term, "even the pro-Beijing camp has better attendance, more speeches, and more votes." He agreed with Wu Chi-wai, chairman of the Democratic Party's opinion that having the opposition in the parliament could delay new "evil laws", but continued to emphasise the importance of proving their decisions with action, saying that, "If you're sitting there only to give speeches and vote "objection" or "abstain", I don't believe that supporters would accept this."

Addressing the fear of losing the right to speak once legislators leave the Legislative Council, Chan stated that it depends on the people for the resistance to survive, that people could have very high recognition despite not being in the Legislative Council, such as some YouTubers or key opinion leaders. He continued that no matter when people suggest a mass resignation would there be opinions against the decision, believing that staying in the Legislative Council has its advantages.

Chan also called for pro-democracy camp members who lean towards staying to listen to public opinion before making their decision or risk a more intense emotional backlash, stating that, "People would respect you or feel disappointed if you leave when they have voted for you to stay; but if you stubbornly refuse to leave when the people called for it, you attract hatred."

Source: Stand News #Aug18
#EddieChu #RayChan

Read the 3-part Series on Democracy Front's Debates on Whether Incumbent Pro-dem Lawmakers shall Serve in Extended Term Under Beijing's LegCo Arrangement:

Part 1:
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/24384

Part 2:
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/24385

Part 3:
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/24386

#ProvisionalCouncil
15 Pro-Dem Legislators' Stay in #LegCo to be Decided by Public Opinion Poll

Source: Ming Pao #Sept5

Read more
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https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/25204

#ProvisionalCouncil
15 Pro-Dem Legislators' Stay in #LegCo to be Decided by Public Opinion Poll

The pro-democracy legislators' decision of whether or not to stay in the Legislative Council for the next year has been up to debate, after the Carrie Lam adminstration postponed the Legislative Election by a year.

15 pro-democracy legislators had decided to use a public opinion poll to determine their stay in the Legislative Council, with the Democratic Party entrusting the Hong Kong Public Opinion Research Institute (#HKPORI) to conduct one.

Chairman of Democratic Party Wu Chi-wai stated that they would leave if half of all participating supporters believes that the pro-democracy camp should leave the Legislative Council.

Participating legislators include seven from the Democratic Party, five from the Civic Party, Claudia Mo from HK First, Fernando Cheung from the Labour Party and Shiu Ka-chun from the Social Welfare functional constituency. Leung Yiu-chung from the Neighbourhood and Worker's Service Centre also expressed that he would take the polls to account.

HKPORI Director Prof. Robert Chung believes that the Institute had decreased the gray area in the current threshold, but stated that "politically neutral" participants would also be taken in account, causing the percentage for those in favour or against the stay to be both not more than half.

When asked about the protocol for such an event, Wu stated that they would take different information into account before making a political judgement.

As for why they were only taking supporters of the participating legislators into account, and not towards all pro-democratic supporters, the Democractic Party stated that it had once considered for all supporters of the pro-democratic camp to participate, but Prof. Chung denied the request stating that the legislator's citizen authorisation came from their supporters.

Prof. Chung had been adamant on Friday, stating that were pro-democratic legislators not tied down, they should not have asked for authorisation.

Source: Ming Pao #Sept5

#DemocraticParty #WuChiWai #RobertChung #Methodology #PublicOpinion #Authorization

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Read the 3-part Series on Democracy Front's Dillemma on Whether Incumbent Pro-dem Lawmakers shall Serve in Extended Term Under Beijing's LegCo Arrangement:

Part 1:
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/24384

Part 2:
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/24385

Part 3:
https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/24386

#ProvisionalCouncil
Hong Kong's Pro-democracy Legislators Refused to Have their Term Extended by Beijing

Hong Kong's pro-democracy legislators Chu Hoi-dick and Ray Chan filed an official letter to the Legislative Council's Secretariat that they refuse to have their current tern be extended into the new legislative year without an election.

Editor's note: After the HKSAR government cancelled the legislative election originally scheduled in Sept 2020, the authorities in Beijing has asked the current legislature to be extended until the next election will take place in at least one year.

Source: InMedia #Sept28
https://bit.ly/3jaZnBa

#RayChan #ChuHoiDick #Legco #LegcoElection #boycott

#ProvisionalCouncil
Democracy Front Supporters Have Split Opnions in #LegCo Exit #Poll

Source: Commercial Radio #Sept29

Read more
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https://t.me/guardiansofhongkong/25768

#ProvisionalCouncil
Democratic Front Supporters Have Split Opinions in #LegCo Exit #Poll

On Sept 30, 2020, the Hong Kong Public Opinion Research Institute (#HKPORI) released the result of an opinion poll commissioned by the Democratic Party, which asked the public whether the pro-democracy legislators should stay in the extended term of the legislature despite the absence of an election.

The result shows a split picture: 47.1 percent of the supporters of the pro-democracy legislators said they should serve for another year, while 45.8% oppose, leaving only 1.3 percentage points of difference.

Democratic Party chairman Wu Chi-wai said it is up to the legislators to make their own decision based on their political judgement, as either side has exceeded 50% of votes.

In a press conference on the same day, 15 pro-democracy lawmakers including Wu announced that they will stay. Wu said he hopes to delay the Government from passing more draconian measures and keep different resistance fronts running.

Legislator Ferdinand Cheung said he personally wanted to leave, but he felt he has responsibility to stay on. He emphasized that holding different opinions does not mean splitting up and different resistance tactics need connection in the future.

Civic party legislators Alvin Yeung and Tanya Chan will quit LegCo, citing personal reasons.

People Power's Ray Chan and Council Alliance's Eddie Chu Hoi-tik had filed their formal departure to the LegCo's secretariat one day before the release of the poll result.

In a radio program on Sept 30, 2020, Chu explained that his action recalls the democracy front's boycott against the Provisional Council. Chu admitted that leaving the position might bring him some restriction; however, when being a legislator, he has many topics to look into but could not address them deeply. In the future, Chu will focus on the #Save12HKYouths action, preservation campaigns and climate issues.

Chu reiterated that different resistance strategies can coexist. He advised those who want to pursue a politician's life to think how Hong Kong can grasp hold of its own fate.

Dr. Robert Chung, the HKPORI director, confirmed the accuracy of the poll, as only 0.7% (18 interviewers) were voided by the system.

According to Chung, a majority of establishment supporters and centrists hoped the pro-democracy lawmakers quit.

Source: Commercial Radio #Sept29
https://www.881903.com/news/local/2359345

#FailedState
One year after Democrats' Victory in District Council Election: HK Government Reinstalls Beijing Loyalists in Area Committee

In 2019 District Council Election, the pro-democracy camp in Hong Kong won a landslide victory; however, the directly elected district councillors have been facing retributive oppression and disfavor from the HKSAR government, as their discussions of certain issues have been banned and funding has been cut.

On the contrary, the defeated pro-Beijing party has received favorable treatment; the new-term Area Committee is unprecedentedly served by the lost pro-Beijing candidates instead of the incumbent councilors.

Though the Area Committee is not a statutory body, its functions highly overlap with the District Council's: government officials will attend the presentation and collect opinions there, at the same time it will receive funding for organizing local activities which helps nurturing the Committee members' regional connections. However, the Area Committee lacks transparency as the public will not be informed about the dates of meetings unless they check them at their local Committees.

Some District Councils have cancelled their appropriation budgets of the Committees to avoid the government using public money to fund its stalwarts. They also worried that the government's long-term and direct appropriation would pave the way for hollowing out the District Council with the Area Committee.

Source: Apple Daily #Nov19
https://hk.appledaily.com/local/20201119/PIWC6ZCSXFGC5IF5BJZQZVLOZA/

#ProvisionalCouncil #AreaCommittee #DistrictCouncil