Elected seats in district councils set to be slashed

District councils are worth retaining though with a limited number of directly elected members to ensure patriots take office, says Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu.

Lee said yesterday ahead of an Executive Council meeting that a review of district administration has entered a final stretch, and the thinking is that district councils will be formulated in "multiple ways" with "certain elements of election."

Councils should be retained as an important tool for district administration and consultation, he added, though their formation should be "depoliticized" with respect to three principles: they would have to safeguard national security, fully implement "patriots administering Hong Kong," and they would conform to an "executive-led" political system.

He described the behavior of district councillors directly elected by voters amid anti-extradition protests in November 2019 as "outrageous," saying they advocated Hong Kong independence, insulted officials and disrupted the councils.

"And by the very fact two-thirds of them either resigned or were disqualified shows absolutely every part of the problem," Lee said. "I think society will not allow district councillors to misbehave like that."

Pro-democracy district councillors swept into office by a landslide in 2019, gaining 392 of 452 seats in the 18 district councils.

But most resigned and dozens were arrested or disqualified after authorities mandated the swearing of an oath of allegiance to the Hong Kong administration.

The tenures of 60 democrats who remained end this December.

Lee also said the number of seats, including ex-officio members, would remain unchanged at 479 as would their pay and subsidies.

"It is all the more important for us to fundamentally improve the structure of district administration, enhance its capacity and strengthen its effectiveness so public expectations of the SAR government and district councils can be met," he said.

Lau Siu-kai, a consultant for pro-Beijing think tank the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau Studies, said he is certain less than half of district councillors would be elected directly.

The rest would be elected indirectly or appointed, he added.

On concerns that such an arrangement would be seen as a regression of democracy, Lau said a district council is not a political body but should serve as an extension of the administration.

"The district councils were dominated by the opposition bloc in the past, which turned the councils into a forum for political struggle a venue for 'Hong Kong independence' and foreign forces," he said, and that was "a serious deviation from the Basic Law."

Meanwhile, democrats have yet to decide about joining district elections.

Wong Tai Sin councillor Mandy Tam Heung-man said the Home and Youth Affairs Bureau said earlier that the coming term's councillors would be split evenly between people elected directly or indirectly and administration appointees.

"I'm worried democracy in the councils will decline and that they might not be able to reflect public opinion in a pluralistic manner," she said.

Tam said she will decide whether to run for a new term when plans are released.

On whether the Democratic Party will run in elections, chairman Lo Kin-hei said: "I've held discussions with former councillors and party members and we will gauge public opinion in hopes of forming a consensus."

Responding to Lee's accusations, Lo said councillors have done a lot to improve people's livelihoods and criticized authorities for banning certain topics at council meetings.

Sham Shui Po district councillor Jay Li Ting-fung of the pro-democracy Beijing Association for Democracy and People's Livelihood said the association has not decided whether members will run for seats.

He said it "isn't ideal" that councillors will not be elected directly and called on the administration to release its plan as soon as possible.

Asked whether hopefuls would have to be nominated and vetted by the Election Committee to join the races for district councils, Secretary for Home Affairs and Youth Affairs Alice Mak Mei-kuen said "certain electoral elements" would be retained.

Sources have said authorities will adopt a "binomial system" under which the two most popular candidates are elected to the council, which would further undermine the ability of the opposition pro-democracy camp to achieve prominence.

cjames.lee@singtaonewscorp.com