Occupy Central
Occupy Central is a civil disobedience movement which began in Hong Kong on September 28, 2014. It calls on thousands of protesters to block roads and paralyse Hong Kong's financial district if the Beijing and Hong Kong governments do not agree to implement universal suffrage for the chief executive election in 2017 and the Legislative Council elections in 2020 according to "international standards." The movement was initiated by Benny Tai Yiu-ting (戴耀廷), an associate professor of law at the University of Hong Kong, in January 2013.
Umbrella Movement
The Umbrella Movement (Chinese: 雨傘運動; pinyin: yǔsǎn yùndòng) is a loose political movement that was created spontaneously during the Hong Kong protests of 2014. Its name derives from the recognition of the umbrella as a symbol of defiance and resistance against the Hong Kong government, and the united grass-roots objection to the decision of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPCSC) of 31 August.
The movement consists of individuals numbering in the tens of thousands who participated in the protests that began on 28 September 2014, although Scholarism, the Hong Kong Federation of Students, Occupy Central with Love and Peace, groups are principally driving the demands for the rescission of the NPCSC decision.
The movement consists of individuals numbering in the tens of thousands who participated in the protests that began on 28 September 2014, although Scholarism, the Hong Kong Federation of Students, Occupy Central with Love and Peace, groups are principally driving the demands for the rescission of the NPCSC decision.
POST OCCUPY CENTRAL - DAY 155:
Full coverage of the day’s events on 20-05
Beijing official crosses off `none of above' for CE poll
There is no way a proposed "none of the above" option on ballot papers for the 2017 chief executive election can be allowed, a Beijing official said yesterday.
Zhang Rongshun, vice chairman of the Legislative Affairs Commission of the National People's Congress Standing Committee, said that if the option were included, the opposition parties might mobilize their supporters to cast such votes in the election.
Under the "none of the above" or blank vote option proposed by University of Hong Kong legal academic Albert Chen Hung-yee, a new election would need to be held if more than half of the voters cast such ballots.
"It is not that all people are devoted to making some things happen. The political culture is such that some people have tried to stop things from being accomplished, for instance [filibustering] in the Legislative Council," Zhang said.
"I think this kind of culture should not go on and on."
He said if a "none of the above" option is introduced, a group of people will be prepared to run in the election while another group will tell voters not to cast votes or cast blank ones.
Zhang also believes that the opposition parties will not accept any kind of political reform mapped out by Beijing under the "one country, two systems" principle and the Basic Law.
He said it does not follow that the composition of the 1,200-strong Nominating Committee will become more democratic if the corporate votes are replaced by individual votes.
"The answer is clear that there is no room to make changes."
But Zhang said the door of the central government is always open for discussions.
He was speaking in Shenzhen after a political seminar with pro-establishment groups from Hong Kong organized by the One Country Two Systems Research Institute.
Federation of Trade Unions honorary president Cheng Yiu-tong quoted Zhang as saying it is unacceptable for the opposition parties to make anti-Communist Party calls and for an end to one-party rule in the mainland.
Cheng also quoted Zhang as saying that if the reform is voted down in the Legislative Council, it remains unknown when the five-step procedures on launching political reform would restart or even if they would restart, if still based on Beijing's August 31 decision.
Votes switch still on cards, claims Tang
Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Standing Committee member Henry Tang Ying-yen believes there is still time to discuss replacing corporate votes in the Nominating Committee with directors' votes.
Tang called on the government and the pan- democrat camp to explore possible amendments to the political reform framework to achieve universal suffrage in 2017.
He also has no intention of becoming a "kingmaker" by setting up the Federation of Hong Kong Jiangsu Community Organizations.
Tang made the remarks yesterday at the inauguration of the federation attended by former chief executive Tung Chee-hwa, acting Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, Financial Secretary John Tsang Chun-wah and Liaison Office director Zhang Xiaoming.
The organization aims to serve as a new force that will help maintain the prosperity and stability of the SAR and safeguard the principle of "one country, two systems."
Zhang Rongshun, vice chairman of the legislative affairs commission of the National People's Congress Standing Committee, earlier said there is no leeway for corporate votes to be replaced by individual votes in the Nominating Committee.
"But if it is said that it still violates the August 31 decision for corporate votes to be replaced by directors' votes, I hope he [Zhang] can explain in what way it violates the decision," Tang said.
Such an option should be explored if it can help win the support of some pan-democrat lawmakers.
Tang remains optimistic that the Legislative Council will pass the reform proposal.
HKU pushed for answers on Tai cash
The Education Bureau repeatedly asked the University of Hong Kong for a thorough review of law scholar and Occupy Central co- organizer Benny Tai Yiu-ting's handling of controversial donations.
In a written reply to Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong lawmaker Chan Kam-lam, Secretary for Education Eddie Ng Hak-kim said: "In the past six months, there were public queries about the sources and uses of certain donations received by the University of Hong Kong.
"The government has also received a number of complaints directed to HKU on this subject. In this regard, the Education Bureau has written repeatedly to the HKU Council and management since November 2014, to request the institution to conduct a thorough review of information in connection with the handling of these donations, and consider releasing further information on the sources of donations to address public concerns."
The HKU Council will soon discuss a report of an audit committee that looked into the case.
A bureau spokesman said it is reasonable to pay attention to the operations of publicly funded institutions that receive a large amount of public money.
"As indicated in the University Grants Committee Notes on Procedures, autonomy does not mean that the institutions could ignore public interest, or are exempted from public scrutiny," the spokesman said.
A spokeswoman for the university said it has received letters from the bureau, and confirmed the HKU Council will make a decision on the donation issue.
Education-sector lawmaker Ip Kin-yuen said it is a rare case, but that he felt the bureau's involvement is inappropriate.
"[HKU] enjoys institutional autonomy and it has launched it's own investigations ... it is totally unnecessary for the government to instruct HKU on what to do," he said.
Last October the media discovered that Tai received a donation of HK$1.45 million which he passed on to the university.
About HK$800,000 was given to the HKU Public Opinion Programme to conduct a "civil referendum" on political reform, and HK$300,000 to the law faculty. The arts faculty got the rest.
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