-- Published on April 13, the local amendment bill mainly comprises six areas, including reconstituting the Election Committee, providing for the method for selecting the chief executive, updating the composition and formation of the LegCo, and the candidates' eligibility, among others.
-- HKSAR Chief Executive Carrie Lam hopes the draft will be passed by lawmakers by the end of May. Hong Kong will hold the elections of the Election Committee, the seventh-term LegCo, and the sixth-term chief executive on Sept. 19, 2021, Dec. 19, 2021 and March 27, 2022, respectively.
-- "Now the electoral system suits Hong Kong's reality, has broader representation of society, and encourages more balanced and orderly political participation," said Anthony Wu, chairman of the Hong Kong Island Youth Organization Union.
HONG KONG, April 14 -- Hong Kong's legislature on Wednesday started deliberating a widely-anticipated bill on improving the electoral system of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) in the latest effort to put the global financial hub back on track after disturbances in recent years.
The draft laws, in a package named the Improving Electoral System (Consolidated Amendments) Bill 2021, were brought to the Legislative Council (LegCo) for the first and second reading at a meeting early afternoon.
The local amendment came after China's top legislature on March 30 adopted the amended Annex I and Annex II to the HKSAR Basic Law, concerning methods for the selection of the HKSAR chief executive and the formation of the LegCo.
Erick Tsang, secretary for constitutional and mainland affairs of the HKSAR government, stressed the necessity of the amendment when speaking at the meeting.
The legislature was repeatedly plunged into chaos in recent years, including by the storming of rioters and malicious filibusters, resulting in the government nearly losing its power to govern Hong Kong, Tsang said.
Published on Tuesday, the local amendment bill mainly comprises six areas, including reconstituting the Election Committee, providing for the method for selecting the chief executive, updating the composition and formation of the LegCo, and the candidates' eligibility, among others.
