LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 23 March 2017 5475 OFFICIAL RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Thursday, 23 March 2017 The Council continued to meet at Nine o'clock MEMBERS PRESENT: THE PRESIDENT THE HONOURABLE ANDREW LEUNG KWAN-YUEN, G.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE JAMES TO KUN-SUN THE HONOURABLE LEUNG YIU-CHUNG THE HONOURABLE ABRAHAM SHEK LAI-HIM, G.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE TOMMY CHEUNG YU-YAN, G.B.S., J.P. PROF THE HONOURABLE JOSEPH LEE KOK-LONG, S.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE JEFFREY LAM KIN-FUNG, G.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE WONG TING-KWONG, S.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE STARRY LEE WAI-KING, S.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE CHAN HAK-KAN, B.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE CHAN KIN-POR, B.B.S., J.P. DR THE HONOURABLE PRISCILLA LEUNG MEI-FUN, S.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE WONG KWOK-KIN, S.B.S., J.P. 5476 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 23 March 2017 THE HONOURABLE MRS REGINA IP LAU SUK-YEE, G.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE PAUL TSE WAI-CHUN, J.P. THE HONOURABLE LEUNG KWOK-HUNG# THE HONOURABLE CLAUDIA MO THE HONOURABLE MICHAEL TIEN PUK-SUN, B.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE STEVEN HO CHUN-YIN, B.B.S. THE HONOURABLE FRANKIE YICK CHI-MING, J.P. THE HONOURABLE WU CHI-WAI, M.H. THE HONOURABLE YIU SI-WING, B.B.S. THE HONOURABLE MA FUNG-KWOK, S.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE CHARLES PETER MOK, J.P. THE HONOURABLE CHAN CHI-CHUEN THE HONOURABLE KENNETH LEUNG THE HONOURABLE ALICE MAK MEI-KUEN, B.B.S., J.P. DR THE HONOURABLE KWOK KA-KI THE HONOURABLE KWOK WAI-KEUNG THE HONOURABLE DENNIS KWOK WING-HANG # According to the Judgment of the Court of First Instance of the High Court on 14 July 2017, LEUNG Kwok-hung, Nathan LAW Kwun-chung, YIU Chung-yim and LAU Siu-lai have been disqualified from assuming the office of a member of the Legislative Council, and have vacated the same since 12 October 2016, and are not entitled to act as a member of the Legislative Council. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 23 March 2017 5477 THE HONOURABLE CHRISTOPHER CHEUNG WAH-FUNG, S.B.S., J.P. DR THE HONOURABLE FERNANDO CHEUNG CHIU-HUNG DR THE HONOURABLE HELENA WONG PIK-WAN THE HONOURABLE IP KIN-YUEN DR THE HONOURABLE ELIZABETH QUAT, J.P. THE HONOURABLE MARTIN LIAO CHEUNG-KONG, S.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE POON SIU-PING, B.B.S., M.H. DR THE HONOURABLE CHIANG LAI-WAN, J.P. IR DR THE HONOURABLE LO WAI-KWOK, S.B.S., M.H., J.P. THE HONOURABLE CHUNG KWOK-PAN THE HONOURABLE ALVIN YEUNG THE HONOURABLE ANDREW WAN SIU-KIN THE HONOURABLE CHU HOI-DICK DR THE HONOURABLE JUNIUS HO KWAN-YIU, J.P. THE HONOURABLE HO KAI-MING THE HONOURABLE LAM CHEUK-TING THE HONOURABLE HOLDEN CHOW HO-DING THE HONOURABLE SHIU KA-FAI THE HONOURABLE WILSON OR CHONG-SHING, M.H. THE HONOURABLE YUNG HOI-YAN 5478 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 23 March 2017 DR THE HONOURABLE PIERRE CHAN THE HONOURABLE CHAN CHUN-YING THE HONOURABLE CHEUNG KWOK-KWAN, J.P. THE HONOURABLE HUI CHI-FUNG THE HONOURABLE LUK CHUNG-HUNG THE HONOURABLE LAU KWOK-FAN, M.H. DR THE HONOURABLE CHENG CHUNG-TAI THE HONOURABLE KWONG CHUN-YU THE HONOURABLE JEREMY TAM MAN-HO THE HONOURABLE NATHAN LAW KWUN-CHUNG# DR THE HONOURABLE YIU CHUNG-YIM# DR THE HONOURABLE LAU SIU-LAI# MEMBERS ABSENT: THE HONOURABLE CHAN HAN-PAN, J.P. THE HONOURABLE LEUNG CHE-CHEUNG, B.B.S., M.H., J.P. THE HONOURABLE JIMMY NG WING-KA, J.P. # According to the Judgment of the Court of First Instance of the High Court on 14 July 2017, LEUNG Kwok-hung, Nathan LAW Kwun-chung, YIU Chung-yim and LAU Siu-lai have been disqualified from assuming the office of a member of the Legislative Council, and have vacated the same since 12 October 2016, and are not entitled to act as a member of the Legislative Council. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 23 March 2017 5479 THE HONOURABLE SHIU KA-CHUN THE HONOURABLE TANYA CHAN THE HONOURABLE KENNETH LAU IP-KEUNG, M.H., J.P. PUBLIC OFFICERS ATTENDING: THE HONOURABLE RAYMOND TAM CHI-YUEN, G.B.S., J.P. SECRETARY FOR CONSTITUTIONAL AND MAINLAND AFFAIRS MR RONALD CHAN NGOK-PANG, J.P. UNDER SECRETARY FOR CONSTITUTIONAL AND MAINLAND AFFAIRS CLERKS IN ATTENDANCE: MISS FLORA TAI YIN-PING, ASSISTANT SECRETARY GENERAL MS DORA WAI, ASSISTANT SECRETARY GENERAL MR MATTHEW LOO, ASSISTANT SECRETARY GENERAL 5480 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 23 March 2017 MEMBERS' MOTIONS PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Good morning. Debate on motion with no legislative effect. This Council will now deal with the motion debate on "Ensuring the fair conduct of the Chief Executive Election". Members who wish to speak in the motion debate will please press the "Request to speak" button. Before I ask Dr YIU Chung-yim to speak and move the motion, I would like to remind Members that the Chief Executive Election will take place in a few days. The Election is regulated by law to ensure that it is conducted openly, honestly and fairly, and the purpose of this motion is to ensure that the Election be conducted under fair conditions. Therefore, Members must take note of the requirements provided by the election legislation and guidelines. To avoid affecting the fair conduct of the Chief Executive Election, Members should focus their speeches on how to ensure a fair conduct of the Election and express their views on the election system. Members should not disseminate messages that may be seen as causing or obstructing the election of any candidates or may achieve a similar result. Specifically, during the debate Members should not name names or imply that they support or not support any candidates; they should not comment on the merits or demerits of individual candidates; they should not comment on reports or hearsays that are unsubstantiated but may cause or obstruct the election of any candidates; and they should not display any objects that may achieve the aforesaid effect. If I consider that the speech of any Member will have an impact on the fair conduct of the Chief Executive Election, I will remind the Member not to make such comments. If the Member ignores my instruction and continues to make such comments, I will ask the Member to stop speaking. I now call upon Dr YIU Chung-yim to speak and move the motion. ENSURING THE FAIR CONDUCT OF THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE ELECTION DR YIU CHUNG-YIM (in Cantonese): President, fellow Members, the election of the fifth Chief Executive of Hong Kong will take place in less than 72 hours. As Hong Kong people demand a fair election system free from any interference, I LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 23 March 2017 5481 propose: "That this Council requests the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region to ensure that the 2017 Chief Executive Election be conducted under fair conditions; this Council also urges the various departments of the Central People's Government not to interfere in the Chief Executive Election, including but not limited to causing a certain candidate to be or not to be elected, or pressurizing members of the Election Committee into making voting decisions against their own wills." To our great regret, at present we do not have the power of civil nomination in Hong Kong, and only 1 194 people have the right to vote in this coterie election. As the election system is already unfair in itself, if even the election is not conducted fairly, it is a dereliction of duty on the part of both the Chinese Government and the Hong Kong Government. Prof MA Ngok, a local scholar, published an article titled "Fair conduct of election and stability of the regime" in 2015, in which he quoted the findings of a study conducted by Pippa NORRIS, a political science scholar, on democratic election. According to the findings, people's impression of the fairness of an election is very important, so much so that it will influence their attitude towards other political issues, including their recognition of a regime, their satisfaction of the government's performance and their attitude towards political participation, and so on. People's discontent may come from: unfair distribution of resources, such as a certain camp's monetary resources far exceed that of its opponents; media partiality to a certain candidate, normally it means the ruling camp gets more coverage and more positive comments; and blatant election fraud and manipulation. If members of the public think that an election has been manipulated, they will be relatively more reluctant to abide by the rules of the game laid down by the government and the national assembly, making governance even harder. Moreover, it is pointed out in the Decentralization and Local Democracy in the World: First Global Report published by the World Bank in 2008 that intervention of the central government in the democratic election of the district government, by means of appointing the leaders and council members of the district, controlling the political decision of the district, prior examining the candidates to ascertain approval, and so on, is harmful to democracy and to good governance of the district government. 5482 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 23 March 2017 Article 22 of the Basic Law provides that "[n]o department of the Central People's Government and no province, autonomous region, or municipality directly under the Central Government may interfere in the affairs which the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region administers on its own in accordance with this Law." Apart from Articles 13 and 14 of the Basic Law which stipulate that the Central People's Government shall be responsible for the foreign affairs relating to and defence of Hong Kong, no other provisions permit the intervention in any of the affairs of Hong Kong by the Central Authorities.