Editor’s note: In the run-up to the chief executive election on Sunday, China Daily talked to foreign experts based in Hong Kong for their opinions on the upcoming poll and the new electoral system. In the second story of this series, “Foreign Insights: Election”, we present you the insights by Grenville Cross, senior counsel and law professor, and former director of public prosecutions of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Here is the full transcript of the interview.

1. Hong Kong will hold its sixth chief executive election on May 8. The election is the first CE poll under the improved electoral system. What do you think about that?

The revised electoral system is designed to ensure that only people can stand for election who have the best interests of the city and the country at heart, and will not seek to undermine the “one country, two systems” policy by provoking confrontations with the central authorities or promoting the agendas of foreign powers. In other words, only people of goodwill can take up elected office, which is clearly prudent after the problems of the recent past. Although foreign powers used their proxies in the past to sabotage the political system from within, those days are now over, and, as a result of the electoral reforms, Hong Kong can now look forward to a far healthier future.

2. Hong Kong’s electoral system has seen changes from time to time since its return to the country in 1997. But one of the constants in these changes is the criticism from the West on the efforts made by the central government and the SAR government. In your opinion, what’s their stake in Hong Kong’s electoral revamp?

The CE electoral arrangements are very much transitional in nature, and the Basic Law stipulates that universal suffrage is the “ultimate aim”, and this has not been affected by the electoral revisions. Indeed, if hostile forces in the legislature, with foreign encouragement, had not blocked the government’s previous electoral reform in 2015, it would have been possible to have elected the CE by universal suffrage in 2017. Although they derailed that proposal, thereby retarding the city’s democratic progress, universal suffrage remains the objective, although it will now take longer to achieve.

3. John Lee Ka-chiu has garnered nominations from over half of the Election Committee members to run for the election. Does this mean that he has wide acceptance among Hong Kong’s various sectors? How will such recognition help Lee’s administration if he is elected?

Mr Lee must secure the support of over 50 percent of the members of the EC (751), which is a very broadly representative body, and this is also an important step on the road to ultimate universal suffrage, and should be viewed in that light.

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