Beijing Adopts Plan to Control Hong Kong Elections
China’s rubber-stamp legislature has approved a draft decision to change Hong Kong’s electoral system, making it virtually impossible for the opposition to affect the outcome of elections.
On March 11, the final day of the annual plenum of the National People’s Congress (NPC), 2,895 delegates voted in favor of the electoral overhaul with zero against and one abstention.
The electoral changes will further reduce democratic representation in the former British colony and introduce a mechanism to vet politicians’ loyalty to the Chinese regime and make sure that only “patriots” are allowed to rule Hong Kong.
China sets conservative economic growth target of above 6% Sorry, but your browser needs Javascript to use this site. If you re not sure how to activate it, please refer to this site: https://www.enable-javascript.com/
Chinese leaders and delegates attend the opening session of the National People s Congress at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Friday. | REUTERS
Reuters Mar 5, 2021
Beijing – China on Friday set a modest annual economic growth target, at above 6%, and pledged to create more jobs in cities than last year as the world s second-biggest economy planned a careful course out of a year disrupted by COVID-19.
China Opens Legislative Session with Eye on Subduing Hong Kong
4 Mar 2021
China began its largest annual political meeting Thursday, an event known as the “Two Sessions” that assembles some 5,000 members of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) elite to work out an agenda for the coming year.
This year’s meeting is scheduled to produce a new set of draconian rules governing Hong Kong politics that will effectively eliminate political dissent and meaningful democratic choice.
The
Hong Kong Free Press (HKFP) noted the omens for Hong Kong’s autonomy are grim, as the report traditionally published by the Two Sessions meeting literally erased the phrase “high degree of autonomy” from its description of the island’s political system, along with the notion of “Hong Kong people ruling Hong Kong” and even the traditional phrase “one country, two systems.”