By Jessie Pang and Joyce Zhou HONG KONG (Reuters) - Hong Kong holds its first "patriots only" district elections on Sunday as a national security crac.
Hong Kong seeks to boost turnout in patriots only election streetinsider.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from streetinsider.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Hong Kong holds its first "patriots only" district elections on Sunday as a national security crackdown imposed by Beijing further marginalises formerly popular opposition figures in the China-ruled city. The pro-China government has been seeking to boost turnout, as some observers see large numbers spurning the polls, in contrast to the last council elections in 2019, during Hong Kong's mass pro-democracy protests, which drew a record 71% turnout and a landslide victory for the democratic camp. All candidates must now undergo national security background checks and secure nominations from pro-government committees, effectively barring democrats, including moderates and even some pro-Beijing figures.
Hong Kong Activist Says Desire for Freedom Led Her to Flee to Canada usnews.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from usnews.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Hong Kong pro-democracy activist Agnes Chow, who fled to Canada while free on bail, says she won't return home amid a crackdown that curbed her freedoms, defying a warning from Hong Kong's leader that she would be pursued for life. Chow said that she faced intense scrutiny from authorities for several years and that with her passport confiscated, she constantly lived in fear and had to remain silent. "I feel like I was forced to stay in such kind of severe environment that I couldn't escape," said Chow, who spoke from Toronto, where she has been for three months.