Over 1.61 mln people sign support for HKSAR district governance reform

HONG KONG, May 30 (Xinhua) -- A coalition backing the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government's district governance reform proposal collected over 1.61 million signatures from Hong Kong residents in support of the overhaul.

From May 5 to May 28, the coalition collected approximately 1.1 million signatures at street stations and about 510,000 online.

The coalition's convener, Starry Lee, who is also a member of the National People's Congress Standing Committee, said Monday that the signatures clearly demonstrate that the Hong Kong society hopes to ensure that the district councils will perform its basic duties and consultative role in accordance with the Basic Law of the HKSAR.

Chan Kwok-ki, chief secretary for administration of the HKSAR government, said he expects the relevant draft to be adopted at HKSAR Legislative Council before its adjournment, allowing the new-term district council elections to be held smoothly at the end of the year.

HKSAR Chief Executive John Lee on May 2 announced proposals to improve governance at the district level. The proposals on improving governance at the district level are guided by three principles: national security must be put as the topmost priority and the "one country, two systems" principle must be fully and faithfully implemented, the principle of "patriots administering Hong Kong" must be fully implemented, and executive-led governance must be manifested.

Lee said the latest district administration review primarily includes two main parts: optimizing the functions and reforming the composition of the district councils to set the system right, and improving the regional governance structure to enhance its effectiveness.