'New DCs Will Still Reflect People's Views'

A consultant to Beijing's top think-tank on Hong Kong said on Tuesday that future district councillors would still reflect the views of the people.

Lau Siu-kai, of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau Studies, said directly elected seats on the councils are being retained because the central government wants to give the pro-democracy camp a chance in elections.

"If district councillors just become cheerleaders or rubber stamps and are unable to reflect the views of the community to the top to change policies at the district level, it would be a dereliction of duty," he told RTHK.

"It also doesn't meet the requirements of the Basic Law of district councils, so it would be strange if there were no dissenting voices [in the councils]."

The government's proposed revamp of district administration would bring back appointed council seats and reduce the ratio of directly-appointed seats from more than 90 percent, to less than one-in-five.

The majority of members would be appointed directly by the government, or selected by members of area, fire safety and fight crime committees.

Would-be district councillors would be vetted in advance to make sure only patriots are in the running, and the councils would be chaired by district officers, who are civil servants. Chief Executive John Lee said the changes are needed to ensure national security and that only patriots administer Hong Kong.

Lau disagreed with the notion that the reforms would be a step backwards, saying that the councils would not serve as a channel for the SAR's democratic development.

Welcoming the move, DAB lawmaker Holden Chow said the overhaul would ensure that all future councillors are patriots who will firmly implement "one country, two systems".

"Going forward, by having the system, we have different people joining the District Councils by being appointed or indirectly elected or directly elected. So by having this sort of mixed ways of having district council members, I'm sure that this will herald good governance," he said.

"And also the indirectly elected members, the area committee members are also key stakeholders on local level, so I'm sure that they have a role to play."

The reform proposals also call for the removal of district council powers to allocate funds. Legislator Priscilla Leung said the Basic Law never intended for the councils to have such powers.

However, Southern district councillor Paul Zimmerman described the revamp as "regrettable" and said the changes would reduce the ability of the councils to properly reflect the views of the people of Hong Kong.

"I think it's ultimately a loss for everyone, the public, the city and the government at all levels. All these changes will limit the ability of government to genuinely read and respond to the needs and desires of the public," he said.

"Reducing the number of elected district councillors to such a small number, and make them representative for a very large area, I think it's practically a big loss in communication, and ultimately the ability of the government to govern effectively."