The Hong Kong District Council Elections were held on Dec. 10, with only 19 percent of the seats directly elected. This triggered harsh criticism from the Hong Kong Centre for Human Rights (HKCHR), an overseas organization.
A report released by HKCHR on Dec. 21 recorded in detail the violations of international human rights standards in the District Council election.
“The changes to the election method and its practices are contrary to the right to vote and to be elected at genuine elections which are to be by universal and equal suffrage, as guaranteed by Article 25 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,” reads the report.
For example, no pan-democrats, including those from the Democratic Party (Hong Kong) and the Hong Kong Association for Democracy and People’s Livelihood (ADPL), which have indicated their stance in the election, can successfully enter the election as candidates under the new nomination method.
The new electoral system requires candidates to be nominated by members of the “Three Committees,” namely the District Fight Crime Committees, the District Fire Safety Committees, and the Area Committees, of which the authorities choose all members. The HKCHR criticised the move as allowing the authorities to control who gets to run indirectly.
Moreover, the contact details of the “Three Committees” members are uniquely opaque, with their telephone numbers and emails not disclosed, making it difficult for potential candidates to contact them.
The revision of the election method this time violated the principle of “non-retrogression of rights,” as the proportion of seats directly elected by voters dropped significantly from 94.4 percent in the last term to 18.7 percent. The remaining seats were overwhelmingly appointed by the “Three Committees” (37.45 percent) and the authorities (38.09 percent).
Civil Servants Pressured to Boost Turnout
The HKCHR pointed out that on and before the polling day on Dec. 10, there were instances of undue influence on voters and obstruction of their free expression, including arrests of people exercising their rights to freedom of speech and peaceful assembly, and “unprecedented practice of gifting voters a card which could potentially be used to identify anyone who has or has not voted.”The report also criticised the authorities for pressuring civil servants to boost turnout.
An anonymous civil servant told the reporter that, without explicitly saying so, her supervisor had emailed, texted her in WhatsApp, and verbally “hinted” and “strongly suggested” she take a picture of the thank you card after voting.
Eight people were arrested for peacefully exercising their rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly in relation to the election.
Three of them were arrested by the Independent Commission Against Corruption for allegedly inciting others to cast invalid votes at the Election, while three members of the pro-democracy group League of Social Democrats were arrested by the police when heading to a polling station for a planned protest to the Chief Executive John Lee, who was there to cast his vote and deliver a speech to the press.
Pedestrians walk past posters promoting candidates during the District Council elections in Hong Kong on Dec. 10, 2023. Louise Delmotte/AP Photo
“Article 25 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights stipulates that every citizen may take part in elections without discrimination,” said a spokesperson for the HKCHR.
“The unfairness of the District Council election this time constitutes discrimination against the democrats and independent candidates, and proves that the entire election was manipulated by the regime, unreasonably restricting Hong Kong people’s right to vote and to stand for election, which is obviously a violation of the Covenant.”
The spokesperson urged the Hong Kong and Chinese authorities to fulfill their obligations under the Covenant as soon as possible, immediately abolish the nomination and selection mechanism, which is not in compliance with the provisions of the Covenant, and implement universal suffrage, so as to safeguard the people’s right to take part in political affairs and their basic rights.
The Hong Kong Centre for Human Rights (HKCHR) was established in 2022 by a group of Hong Kong human rights practitioners focusing on legal and policy research, with the aim of providing reliable information on human rights, the rule of law, and political development in Hong Kong.
