China Rewrites Hong Kong Election Rules to Keep Opponents Out

HONG KONG—China’s prime lawmaking overall body rewrote electoral regulations for Hong Kong to give Beijing decisive control above how the metropolis chooses its chief and legislators, placing pro-institution politicians firmly in cost of the previous British colony.

The modifications, authorized Tuesday, will curtail democratic representation in Hong Kong by slashing the share of directly elected seats in the area legislature, although offering unelected political bodies extra influence above the city’s governance. Regional nationwide-safety officers will also get effective veto electricity above election candidates, permitting authorities to bar opposition figures from elected business office.

These actions formalized Beijing’s strategies to tighten its grip on Hong Kong with electoral overhauls that ensure only “patriots” can govern the Asian money middle. China’s nationwide legislature authorized the proposal throughout its annual session this month, paving the way for senior lawmakers to finalize the facts this week.

Opposition teams say the electoral modifications are component of Beijing’s systematic erosion of lots of legal rights and freedoms that Hong Kong people were being promised for the fifty percent-century following Britain’s handover of the territory to Chinese rule in 1997.

Beijing has sought to crush dissent in Hong Kong due to the fact antigovernment protests triggered citywide chaos in 2019. After imposing a nationwide-safety legislation on the metropolis in June, authorities have rounded up scores of pro-democracy figures and disqualified many opposition lawmakers.