HKSAR's District Council election fully demonstrates quality democracy, observers say

HONG KONG, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Various sectors of Hong Kong have spoken highly of the 7th District Council Ordinary Election of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) as a high-quality election with democracy underscored.

The election, the first of its kind since the HKSAR reformed the electoral system to improve district governance, concluded on Sunday and was considered to be of great significance.

Wong Wai-ching, a member of the Standing Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference National Committee, said that since district affairs are very important to people's livelihood, this high-quality election has fully implemented the principle of "patriots administering Hong Kong," allowing the district councils (DCs) to restore their original function, which is to serve the public.

Many of the candidates in this election are young and of high quality, having professional backgrounds, and more importantly, with the further implementation of the principle of "patriots administering Hong Kong," anti-China disruptors were excluded from the grassroots governance structure of the HKSAR and the DCs will have a group of dedicated and strong members who are ready to serve the public and society, said Wong who is also head of the Kowloon Federation of Associations.

Lau Siu-kai, a consultant for the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macao Studies, a think tank, said the new term DCs are broadly representative of the Hong Kong community and fully reflect public opinion, representing the optimization and enhancement of democracy in Hong Kong.

Willy Fu, a director of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macao Studies, also vice chairman of the Executive Council of Hong Kong Legal Exchange Foundation, said the election is a high-quality reform from the bottom, bringing order out of chaos. It has been conducted in a fair, just, and open manner, following the law and regulations, so as to put the DCs back on the right track.

Yan Xiaojun, an associate professor in politics and public administration at the University of Hong Kong, said it is conducive to the implementation of the executive-led system of the HKSAR with the new term DCs reverting to their positioning as district advisory bodies which are not organs of political power in accordance with Article 97 of the HKSAR Basic Law.

Yan said that under the new system, the DCs can better perform their functions and play their roles in reflecting public opinion, to better assist the HKSAR government in further improving governance, which in turn, will improve people's livelihood and well-being.

Members of the HKSAR Legislative Council (Legco) also expressed their expectations that by working together with the legislature and the executive, the new DCs can help promote good governance of the HKSAR government and resolve deep-seated problems.

Lawmaker Chan Han-pan summed up this election as "high quality", noting that the success of the poll reflected the superiority of the new electoral system.

Chow Man-kong, another Legco member, said the new electoral system will effectively collect the views of the grassroots and, more importantly, enable quality democracy, which combines the rule of law with order, to take root in Hong Kong for the benefit of all Hong Kong residents.