Legitimacy of HK election beyond question: China Daily editorial

While subversives in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region have been generally deterred from openly engaging in disruptive acts by the National Security Law enforced in the region last year, there are still some trying to challenge Hong Kong's constitutional status as a special administrative region of China.

The latest attempt is a bid to undermine the upcoming election for the local legislature, the Legislative Council, by dissuading voters from casting their votes.

In lock step with the Western China-bashers' campaign to vilify Hong Kong's revamped election system, the local machinations, including coming up with manipulated poll results indicating "low voter enthusiasm", are intended to discourage people from voting.

The underlying calculation is that a low election turnout would somehow support the claim that the LegCo election lacks legitimacy because the electoral revamp aimed at ensuring "patriots administer Hong Kong" has, in effect, deprived the anti-China elements of the chance to enter the legislature.

It is an insult to intelligence to claim that not allowing subversives to enter Hong Kong's political establishment via the election will deprive the legislature of its legitimacy.

As Xia Baolong, director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council, said on Monday, "When we talk about 'patriots administering Hong Kong', we do not mean there should be 'uniformity'. What we emphasize is that those seeking 'Hong Kong independence' and anti-China elements who disrupt Hong Kong must not enter the governance structure of the special administrative region."

The legitimacy of LegCo comes from it conforming with Hong Kong's constitutional status as a special administrative region of China. That means the election of its members has to be held in strict accordance with the mechanism prescribed by the Basic Law and the relevant decisions made by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.

The myth that copycatting Western-style democracy is the only way to give election legitimacy has long been busted. What those promoting Western-style democracy wanted for Hong Kong was not real democracy, but a crisis of social division and fierce struggle that would result in social disorder and disruption in governance. The effects of Hong Kong's "black storm" are still being felt by many whose livelihoods were affected.

Patriots administering Hong Kong is imperative to both safeguard national security and maintain Hong Kong's stability and prosperity and improve the well-being of its residents.

The legitimacy of the upcoming LegCo election requires no confirmation from China-bashers.