香 港 人 權 監 察
HONG KONG HUMAN RIGHTS MONITOR
香 港 上 環 孖 沙 街 二 十 號 金 德 樓 4 樓
4/F Kam Tak Building, 20 Mercer Street, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong
電話 Phone: (852) 2811-4488 傳真 Fax: (852) 2802-6012
電郵地址 Email: contact@hkhrm.org.hk 網址 Website: http://www.hkhrm.org.hk
For immediate release
Press contact: Mr. Law Yuk-Kai, Director (852) 2811 4488
Positive contribution to a futile
exercise
(Hong Kong: 11 May 2004) The Hong Kong Human Rights Monitor urges today
the Hong Kong public to register their opposition to the current
undemocratic political system in Hong Kong and the consultation on
political development in Hong Kong. This would be a positive
contribution to these futile consultations.
By formally registering such opposition, the public will avoid being
mis-interpreted as accepting or acquiescing in the denial of the right
to universal and equal suffrage in Hong Kong by the Chinese and Hong
Kong authorities.
By registering such opposition, the public will also avoid lending
legitimacy to window dressing amendments to the system. The people
power demonstrated in the July 1 demonstration should translate itself
into a huge number of opposition registrations against the lack of
democracy in Hong Kong.
“Let statistics tell the truth,” said Law Yuk-kai, Director of Human
Rights Monitor. “The only way to stop the authorities from including
you in its unholy alliance to undermine the prospect of democracy is to
have a massive show of opposition by telling them not to count us in
their supporters’ list, and to tell the authorities that we have had
enough of being included in their futile exercise.
The earlier consultation conducted before the Second Report by the
Constitutional Reform Task Force has led to a list of nine factors
which are basically not only obstacles to the current constitutional
review,
but which will also haunt Hong Kong in future reviews. Human Rights
Monitor sees no usefulness in such a consultation, which will be used
to defeat calls for democracy and manipulate Hong Kong to suit the
Chinese authorities.
“A proportional increase in the number of functional constituency seats
with any increase in the seats returned by universal and equal suffrage
will only encourage the Frankenstein-like functional constituencies to
grow. Not only do they serve no good purpose but it also makes it more
difficult to kill them off,” warned Law in response to the call for
“increasing democracy” by increasing the number of seats. The Chinese
authorities have forced on Hong Kong a 50 to 50 ratio of the number of
functional constituency seats to seats elected by universal and equal
suffrage in the Legislative Council election in 2008.
The obvious approach to solving Hong Kong’s problems inherent in its
political system are to have reforms centred around the Chief Executive
and all the Members of the Legislative Council being returned on the
basis of universal and equal suffrage.
“There is no point in wasting efforts in providing any models under the
restrictions set by the Chinese authorities because any useful
improvements will not be accepted by the Chinese authorities and the
business tycoons who want to monopolise political power in Hong Kong.
All reasonable solutions to solving Hong Kong’s current political
deficiencies will be taken as a direct challenge to political
domination and will not be accepted.
“The best strategy for the Hong Kong public is to continue to demand
for their right to universal suffrage. Mounting pressure by focusing on
the problems will be more beneficial than wasting time offering
possible solutions to questions that the authorities never really
intended to be answered,” said Law. “Until the political atmosphere in
the Chinese leadership shows any sign of change, offering detailed and
meaningful reform proposals is just futile.”