Manipulating Hong Kong LegCo election won't be allowed: spokesperson

Photo taken on June 11, 2020 shows the city view of Hong Kong, south China. (Xinhua/Li Gang)

A spokesperson for the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council said Tuesday that it will never allow any illegal manipulation in the Legislative Council (LegCo) election in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR).

The spokesperson condemned the so-called "primaries" recently organized by the opposition camp in Hong Kong, saying that such acts have constituted illegal manipulation of the LegCo election and posed a blatant challenge to the HKSAR Basic Law and the national security law for the HKSAR.

The spokesperson expressed resolute support for punishing such illegal acts in accordance with the law.

Hong Kong is scheduled to hold a general election for the seventh-term LegCo in September.

The so-called "primaries" sought to hijack public opinion under the pretext of a "referendum," said the spokesperson, noting that they posed a grave threat to the constitutional order of the HKSAR and harmed the democratic electoral system in Hong Kong.

The so-called "primaries" and "referendum" are not stipulated in the Basic Law or any existing law on an election in Hong Kong, rendering such acts organized by any group or individual illegal, the spokesperson said.

Also, the so-called "primaries" have severely disturbed the election order and may have violated the national security law for the HKSAR, the spokesperson added.

Hong Kong citizens celebrate the passage of the Law of the People's Republic of China on Safeguarding National Security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) in Causeway Bay of south China's Hong Kong, June 30, 2020. (Xinhua/Wang Shen)

The HKSAR government has received a large number of complaints regarding the so-called "primaries," said the spokesperson, stressing the need for serious investigation and severe punishment in accordance with the law.

The so-called "primaries" are an extension of the turbulence that has lasted more than a year following the proposed ordinance amendments in Hong Kong, the spokesperson said.

Benny Tai Yiu-ting, the major plotter and organizer of the so-called "primaries," was also a key mastermind behind the 2014 illegal "Occupy Central" movement, an advocate of both "Hong Kong independence" and the terrorist suicidal tactic of "burn with us," and a political proxy of foreign and external forces in Hong Kong, the spokesperson said.

Tai and other like-minded people are among the culprits of the chaos which has jeopardized Hong Kong and the wellbeing of its residents, the spokesperson added.

They used "safeguarding Hong Kong's high degree of autonomy" as a disguise to create chaos, attempting to turn Hong Kong into a base for waging a "color revolution" against the country and conducting infiltration and subversive activities, the spokesperson said.

With the national security law for the HKSAR in place, Hong Kong is embracing a turnaround to end the chaos, restore order and bring itself back to the right track, said the spokesperson.

"We sincerely hope that people in Hong Kong can tell right from wrong and resolutely say 'no' to any acts challenging the bottom line of 'one country, two systems' or undermining prosperity and stability in Hong Kong," the spokesperson said.