The Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress passed a resolution on Wednesday that makes four opposition members of the Legislative Council ineligible for LegCo’s extended sixth term legislative session. Although this is not the first time opposition lawmakers have been disqualified, the latest NPCSC decision is a concrete step toward fully implementing the principle of “patriots governing Hong Kong”.
The four sixth-term LegCo members had already lost their bid to run for reelection in the seventh-term LegCo Election, originally scheduled for September this year, because of their separatist standing. After the SAR government decided to postpone the seventh-term LegCo Election till next fall because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the NPCSC passed a decision in August that allows the sixth-term LegCo members to continue executing their legislative duties for no less than a year, until the seventh-Term LegCo is selected and sworn in next fall. Upon hearing that decision, many Hong Kong residents demanded the four disqualified opposition lawmakers be barred from serving the extended term in office. The NPCSC decision on Wednesday officially put an end to public debates over this issue for good. It has cleared up the confusion surrounding the eligibility of those lawmakers, setting the precedent for future reference when necessary.
That said, it is more important to note that the latest NPCSC decision also reaffirmed the principle of “patriots governing Hong Kong.” Along with “one country, two systems” and a high degree of autonomy, late State leader Deng Xiaoping gave us the ingenious solution to maintaining the stability and prosperity of Hong Kong as a special administrative region of the People’s Republic of China. As a system design, Hong Kong’s “high degree of autonomy” is authorized by the central government according to the Basic Law of the HKSAR, which was promulgated in accordance with the nation’s Constitution; while in practice “the people of Hong Kong governing Hong Kong” also means “patriots governing Hong Kong”, for obvious reasons. Deng explained back in 1984: “‘The people of Hong Kong governing Hong Kong’ has a bottom line and criterion, which is the people of Hong Kong in this case must be predominantly patriotic local residents. And what are the criteria for a patriot? They include utmost respect for one’s own nation, sincerely upholding the motherland’s exercise of sovereignty over Hong Kong and never harming Hong Kong’s prosperity and stability.” All that can be summed up as the principle of “patriots governing Hong Kong.”
Frankly speaking, the principle of “patriots governing Hong Kong” was rarely mentioned in the early days of the HKSAR, because the political ecosystem back then was relatively healthy and the nascent opposition camp was mainly focused on voicing disagreement with the SAR government over social and livelihood issues as well as matters concerning constitutional development. The opposition camp had refrained from crossing the one-country “bottom line” until 2003, when it forced the SAR government to withdraw the national security legislation proposed according to Article 23 of the Basic Law. In the following years, a “localist” faction emerged within the opposition camp and gradually morphed into separatist groups pursuing Hong Kong independence, by ganging up with like-minded forces overseas no less to challenge the sovereign State — the Central People’s Government of the People’s Republic of China. Such illegal activities saw quite a few lawmakers openly involved as staunch supporters and advocates in LegCo and in public. That is why Hong Kong society needs to be reminded of the “patriots governing Hong Kong” principle now more than ever.
According to the Basic Law, the LegCo is an important part of the governance establishment of the HKSAR. That means the “patriots governing Hong Kong” principle applies to LegCo as well. Besides, Deng also warned, “Do not assume that Hong Kong people can run Hong Kong affairs without the central government for sure. That will never happen because it is unrealistic. ... Who’s to say nothing harmful to the fundamental interest of the country will happen in the SAR? No? Then who’s to say Beijing should or should not step in when something harmful to national interest happens (in Hong Kong)?”
As a matter of fact, the first time the central authorities acted to set the record straight on “patriots governing Hong Kong” was in 2016, when the NPCSC exercised its exclusive right to interpret the Basic Law and cleared up the confusion over Article 104 of the law regarding the oath all elected officials, including lawmakers, must take sincerely and precisely before assuming office.
The political situation in Hong Kong has changed dramatically since the NPCSC interpreted Article 104 of the Basic Law in 2016. So much so that the highest body of State power took an even more monumental step in reaffirming the principle of “patriots governing Hong Kong” by passing the Law of the People’s Republic of China on National Security in the Hong Kong Special Administra-tive Region earlier this year. The next logical step would be clarifying what being a patriot entails; hence the latest NPCSC decision announced on Wednesday.
It lists what disqualifies a person from serving in LegCo as follows: advocating or supporting Hong Kong independence; refusing to acknowledge the fact that the central government exercises sovereignty over Hong Kong; asking foreign or external forces to interfere in the internal affairs of the HKSAR; conducting any other act that may harm the national security of the country; and not meeting such requirements as upholding the Basic Law of the HKSAR of the PRC and pledging allegiance to the HKSAR of the PRC according to the Basic Law and relevant Hong Kong law. These criteria will also apply to implementing “patriots governing Hong Kong” in other scenarios when qualification is necessary.
In addition to the criteria, the latest NPCSC decision also provides the mechanism for implementation, beginning with “confirmation of ineligibility according to relevant law”, in keeping with the spirit of the rule of law; and followed by authorization for the HKSAR government to announce the name of a legislator who is not qualified for the job according to the Decision. From now on, “patriots governing Hong Kong” is not just a statement but also a working system.
The author is senior research officer of the One Country Two Systems Research Institute.
The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.
