The central authorities of China called this step a violation of the new law on protection of national security.
One of the protest leaders in Hong Kong, opposition youth activist Joshua Wong, intends to participate in the Legislative Council elections scheduled for September 6, 2020. The announcement was made by RTHK radio station on Monday.
Former leader of the radical party Demosisto has registered his candidacy in the territorial district “East Kowloon”. Wong, 23, did not rule out that he could be disqualified because of his political views unacceptable to Beijing.
Last Saturday, the process of registration of candidates for the election began and will continue until the end of the month. A week ago, an opposition camp held an online trial of candidate selection. China’s central authorities condemned the move, calling it “illegal manipulation” before the election and a violation of the new law on the protection of national security.
In the initial elections, Wong gained the support of about 31,000 people, which indicates his high ranking. In Beijing, he is considered a supporter of separatist ideas and one of the organizers of the protest movement. He was the founder of the radical party Demosisto, which promoted the ideas of “independence of Hong Kong”, but was voluntarily disbanded on June 30, the day the Chinese parliament passed a new law on ensuring national security in Hong Kong.
The Hong Kong Legislative Council is a unicameral parliament with 70 members. Half of the parliament is elected by direct vote in the territorial constituencies, while the other half is nominated by representatives of industry communities on professional grounds.
Last November, the election of deputies to the district councils was convincingly won by opposition candidates who won 90% of the seats. At the same time, representatives of the opposition camp fear that the new law on national security might affect the results of the current election. In this regard, the opposition does not rule out the possibility of disqualifying a number of candidates from democratic parties on the grounds that their political views may be considered as “unpatriotic”.