South China morning post
Amid fears Beijing plans to replace, some group-based lawyers are skeptical about the influence of the Bauhinia Party
Beijing may use the new Bauhinia Party to replace members of the pro-establishment camp in Hong Kong, political veterans have said, but an adviser to the city leader questioned whether the central government was really behind the group and the expectation that its impact would be limited. These mainland Chinese-born businessmen got much of the political establishment under guard last week with the announcement that they had registered the Bauhinia Party and would formally launch the group in one or three months. It aims to recruit up to 250,000 members, leaving the party to rise above the rest if achieved. Hong Kong political newbie party Bauhinia Party dispels fears about mainland China rootBut in an interview with the Post, one of the co-founders tried to allay fears that they were a substitute for Beijing’s intention to eliminate all competitors, calling for their goal to strike a middle ground through the political solution and create a consensus on how best to solve fundamental problems in society- social. The party intends to train political talent and eventually offer candidates for both Legislative Council and chief executive elections. Get the latest ideas and analysis from our Global Impact newsletter on the big stories that came from China. “Beijing hopes our crisis will benefit Hong Kong but not to provoke trouble before we launch. But in the last few days, many members of the pro-establishment camp have complained to the liaison office about us … and asked for clarification on whether our party was set up to replace them, Said Charles Wong Chau-chi, party secretary and leader. Hong Kong-registered multimedia company CMMB Vision. “I would like to reach out to other political parties and work with them. I don’t see that as any competition at all. ” The other co-founders are Li Shan, who is chairman, and Chen Jianwen. Both of them are representatives of China’s main political advisory body, the People’s Political Consultative Conference of China. Business party leader Felix Chung Kwok-pan, of the Liberal Party, said he was not surprised that some of his pro-establishment colleagues were concerned about the emergence of the Bauhinia Party, although it was not. “I believe Beijing had planned to replace some incompetent members with capable newcomers, who can think independently to find solutions to deep-seated problems,” he said.Chung believes the new party . first focus on five or six seats in the legislature’s functional areas governed by Chinese-funded initiatives and pro-Beijing industry associations, then try to compete with, or with, key parties, including the Democratic Alliance for the Development and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB), in about five years.Wong Kwok-kin, of the Confederation of Trade Unions and de facto cabinet member of Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, Government Signa the Council, when the Bauhinia Party was introduced because critics said that Beijing was disappointed with the performance of some pro-founding members. ”In fact, some members only care about their sets and personal interests. The new camp needs fresh blood, as people with these professional backgrounds, ”said Wong, adding that Beijing should have supported the consideration of the“ wide-ranging ”connections that existed. at Li in mainland political circles. But lawyer Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee, chairman of the New People’s Party and also a member of Exco, doubted the new group would make a big impact and questioned what support they had received from Beijing. nothing wrong with Li positioning himself as a reformer. But as a group of financiers, can they help the pro-establishment camp to win seats we can’t win, like the accounting, education and legal departments? ”She said. “If they can only add value and create cannibalism within the camp, this is pointless. The ambitious goal of the Bauhinia Party to register 250,000 members surprised the political arena, as the DAB, founded in 1992, is now the largest opposition party to Beijing. , with just about 40,000 members. Wang said that in many democracies, 40 to 50 per cent of citizens belonged to political parties, but that the number was much lower in Hong Kong. “Hong Kong has 7.5 million people. If half the population is politically active and involved in some kind of political process, you are talking about millions of people, ”said only DA Yiu-chung of the DAB, the only representative at Hong Kong to the Standing Committee of the National People’s Transport, questioning whether the membership goal was reasonable. “Action speaks louder than words,” he said. “It is not easy to hire members to join a political party in Hong Kong.” Tam said the liaison office “would not oppose or support anyone in forming a local party. His colleague, Leung Che-cheung, said he believed the new group’s body would be affected by direct limited elections, and said Beijing would prefer no one party to take control of Hong Kong in the long-term. “Without coordination with the whole bloc, I fear they can do nothing in elections just without regional ties” view, the new Bauhinia Party can walk into the mainstream with high coordination “Why not use a group of mainland – born elites they trusted instead of relying on local parties to build talent?” Civil Party chairman Alan Leong Kah-kit said he doubted pro-democracy supporters would be persuaded by a new pro-Beijing party, with what he described as the political ban seen in recent years. “The third path proposed by the new party will not work unless the founders can force Beijing to promise freedom, Hong Kong human rights and the rule of law as promised,” he said. fearing a plan Instead, some pro-establishment lawyers who were skeptical about the influence of the Bauhinia Party on the South China Morning PostFor for the latest news from the South China Morning Post downloaded our mobile app. Copyright 2020.