This photo dated Nov 12, 2020 shows a corner inside the Legislative Council building, Hong Kong. (CALVIN NG/CHINA DAILY)

Hong Kong residents living on the Chinese mainland said they will fulfill their civic responsibility by voting in the upcoming Legislative Council election at polling stations that will be set up at cross-border checkpoints between Hong Kong and Shenzhen.

Their remarks came after Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor revealed a government proposal that will allow Hong Kong electors who live on the mainland to cast their ballots within the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region on Dec 19, the polling day of the 2021 LegCo election, without being subjected to mandatory quarantine after they return to the mainland. The plan is under discussion by the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office and mainland checkpoint authorities, she said.

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It will be the first time that the HKSAR government has made an electoral arrangement for registered voters living outside the city. Under Hong Kong law, the election and related activities must take place within the city. 

Fung Wing-cheong, deputy director of the consulting service center of the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions in Shenzhen, said he is willing to vote at such a special polling station, adding that he is pleased to see the HKSAR government’s efforts to ensure that Hong Kong voters based on the mainland can exercise their right to vote.

The government shall prepare for challenges when implementing the new voting plan, Fung said. He added that he is concerned about human-traffic pressure on the checkpoints on the polling day and the needs of Hong Kong residents living outside Shenzhen.

The HKSAR government will soon conduct a survey to determine how many voters will need the service at the checkpoints of Shenzhen Bay and the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, the only two operating land ports with the mainland

Michael Wong Pang, a Hong Kong entrepreneur who runs an aviation logistics company in Shenzhen, applauded the proposed arrangement, saying it will allow more mainland-based Hong Kong people to cast their votes in a vital election.

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Ko Shing-chu, a 75-year-old Hong Kong resident in Shenzhen, said he will come to a checkpoint polling station to vote to help form a new legislature that fulfills its statutory duty and will bring a new look to the Hong Kong political environment.

The SAR government will soon conduct a survey to determine how many voters will need the service at the checkpoints of Shenzhen Bay and the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, the only two operating land ports with the mainland. The others have been suspended since February 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

About 370,000 Hong Kong residents, or 5 percent of the city’s population, live on the mainland, according to the national population census released in May. Hong Kong has more than 4.4 million registered voters.

The announcement follows statements last week from the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office and Lam that Hong Kong and the mainland were discussing quarantine-free cross-border travel, aiming to reach a certain level of “border reopening” in February.

Lam also responded to recent calls by some for a boycott of the LegCo election, warning that such behavior risks violating the Elections (Corrupt and Illegal Conduct) Ordinance. The ordinance makes it illegal to incite others to “not to vote or to cast invalid votes” during elections, and violaters can receive up to three years in prison.

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Lam said the law enforcement agencies will take resolute action against acts of incitement, including speeches, writing, displaying notices or other recorded materials.

Contact the writers at shumanchen@chinadailyhk.com