Current Political Situation

On July 1, 1997, Hong Kong reverted to Chinese sovereignty, beginning its fundamentally important experiment with "one country, two systems." Since the handover, the international community has monitored respect for Hong Kong's "high degree of autonomy" and democratic reforms as called for under the Basic Law (Hong Kong's mini-constitution).

While civil liberties continue to be upheld in the HKSAR, there has been limited progress toward direct elections for the Chief Executive and the LegCo, which the Basic Law allows for as early as 2007.. The executive is not accountable to the public through direct elections since the Chief Executive (CE) is elected by a select group of 800 individuals who form the Election Committee. The "executive-led" government has not built a strong relationship with any of the political parties in the Legislative Council (LegCo), Hong Kong's legislature. The LegCo has relatively narrow powers with no role in forming a government. In addition, only half of the LegCo is elected through universal suffrage.

Pro-democracy activists had hoped that universal suffrage would apply to the 2007 CE and 2008 LegCo elections, following a prescribed 10-year transition period after the handover as outlined under the Basic Law. However, in April 2004, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (SCNPC) in Beijing issued an interpretation of the Basic Law that ruled out universal suffrage for Hong Kong in the 2007 and 2008 elections. The SCNPC pointed out that the Basic Law does not specify a time frame for universal suffrage in Hong Kong; rather, it states that universal suffrage for electing the CE and entire LegCo is the ultimate aim, but will be based on the "actual situation" and "the principle of gradual and orderly progress."

In September 2004, in accordance with the schedule set out in the Basic Law, Hong Kong citizens directly elected 30 of the 60 legislators in the LegCo, up from only 24 in the previous election. The remaining 30 legislators were elected through functional constituencies, which represent various special interest sectors. The 2004 elections exemplify how elections in the HKSAR do not meet international standards. The government framework and limited voter rights established by the Basic Law provides for a system that effectively concentrates political power in the hands of economic and political elites. As a result, the election system hinders the ability of citizens to influence who controls the government, the LegCo, and government policy.

On March 10, 2005, CE Tung Chee-hwa resigned citing health reasons, with over two years remaining in his second term. The Election Committee was scheduled to elect the next CE on July 10, 2005. However, when former Chief Secretary Donald Tsang emerged from the nomination period in June as the sole candidate, an election was no longer necessary according to Hong Kong's laws, and the process ended at the nomination stage with Tsang as the new CE. Pro-democracy advocates and legislators had protested the Hong Kong government's position that Tung's successor should only serve out the remaining two years of the former CE's five-year term as the Basic Law makes no provision for a CE to serve fewer than five years.

NDI is working to support political reform in Hong Kong, including strengthening political parties and civil society organizations.

NDI Programs

Since 1997, NDI has conducted a series of assessment missions to Hong Kong to consider the development of the HKSAR's "post-reversion" election framework, the status of autonomy, rule of law and civil liberties under Chinese sovereignty, and the prospects for democratization beyond the 10-year transition period set forth in the Basic Law. In 2002, NDI established a field office in Hong Kong.

In conjunction with the assessment missions, NDI has published an ongoing series entitled, "The Promise of Democratization in Hong Kong," that assesses the prospects for the development of a democratic electoral framework and identifies the obstacles that impede further democratization in Hong Kong.

NDI works with political parties and civil society organizations to encourage public discussion and debate on political reform. The Institute shares information with and provides technical assistance to Hong Kong political parties, political groups, and civil society organizations seeking to increase their ability to increase citizen participation in the HKSAR's political life. NDI does not provide funding to any political party or political group in Hong Kong.

Since 2002, NDI has provided technical assistance to Hong Kong's political parties and political groups to address issues such as: membership recruitment; media relations; communicating with constituents; voter contact; and fundraising. Through multi-party and single-party workshops, as well as consultations with party leaders, NDI has worked with all of the HKSAR's major parties to discuss the external political environment and the parties' internal structural weaknesses. Participating parties and political groups have included the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, the Democratic Party, the Liberal Party, The Frontier, the Hong Kong Progressive Alliance, the Citizens Party, and the Article 45 Concern Group. In 2005, NDI initiated a six-month young political leaders program focused on training a core group of rising party and political group members in political communications skills. In 2005, NDI commenced a training program for young political leaders, and in 2006, NDI launched a training program for candidates for the 2007 District Council elections.

In addition, NDI has sponsored professional public opinion polls by the University of Hong Kong's (HKU) Public Opinion Programme to assist Hong Kong's parties in determining public perceptions about political parties and various political issues in the HKSAR. NDI continues to seek to improve the standards of polls that the parties use to inform their policies and platforms. In 2006, NDI commissioned a similar poll conducted by the Hong Kong Transition Project at Baptist University linking public opinions on political parties and attitudes toward governance.

While NDI seeks to help parties strengthen themselves, it is clear that some of the limiting factors are external ones that need to be addressed not only by the parties but also civil society. In November 2004, NDI co-organized with HKU an international conference on strengthening political parties in Hong Kong. The program addressed comparative experiences of political party development in Hong Kong, Western Europe, Australia and South Korea by focusing on the role of party laws and party financing. Representatives from political parties, academia and other sectors of civil society came together to examine concrete proposals to advance political party development in Hong Kong.

In March 2005, NDI again co-organized with HKU a workshop on improving political parties' relations with the media. This program included panels with senior politicians from across the spectrum and experienced journalists as well as a hands-on training session with professional media consultants.

NDI also actively supports civil society efforts to address good governance and monitor Government actions. These include Hong Kong-based public policy think tank SynergyNet's annual governance review project that combines extensive research and a public forum to both determine and publicize the views of Hong Kong residents and legislators on important aspects of governance in the HKSAR. The Institute also supported SynergyNet's production of voter guides for the 2003 District Council elections and 2004 LegCo elections. In 2004, SynergyNet followed up on the LegCo voter guide with a review of LegCo's performance, an annual project that NDI again supported in 2005.

In March 2005, NDI and Civic Exchange co-hosted a workshop to explore constitutional reform in Hong Kong. In July, NDI supported a public forum jointly conducted by the Hong Kong Policy Research Institute (HKPRI), Civic Exchange, and SynergyNet to discuss relevant topics for Hong Kong's governance and suggest what the new CE could do regarding these issues. Academics, politicians, journalists, and representatives from other sectors of civil society came together to debate the issues.

In February 2006, NDI conducted an assessment of Hong Kong campaign infrastructure after meeting with various political, civil, and academic institutions. Later in July, NDI released its Contesting Campaigns in Hong Kong: A Critical Look at Infrastructure and Practices which examines the legal infrastructure and customary practices of the campaign situation in Hong Kong.

Selected Publications

• Timetables & Destinations: Hong Kong perceptions and politics after the 2017-2020 time frame ruling
• NDI Hong Kong Report 12: The Promise of Democratization in Hong Kong - The 2007 District Council Elections, Legislative Council by-Election, and Prospects for Constitutional Reform, December 27, 2007
• Hong Kong, SAR: The First 10 Years Under China’s Rule, June 1, 2007
• NDI Hong Kong Report 11: The Promise of Democratization in Hong Kong: The 2007 Chief Executive Election, April 30, 2007
• Contesting Campaigns in Hong Kong: A Critical Look at Infrastructure and Practice, July 1, 2006
• Focus Group Research Report on Political Parties in Hong Kong, June 15, 2006
• Parties, Policies and Political Reform in Hong Kong, May 1, 2006
• NDI Hong Kong Report 10: The Promise of Democratization in Hong Kong: The 2005 Chief Executive Election, June 21, 2005
• NDI Hong Kong Report 9: The Promise of Democratization in Hong Kong: The September 12, 2004 Legislative Council Elections - A Pre-election Report, August 31, 2004
• NDI Hong Kong Report 8: The Promise of Democratization in Hong Kong: The Impact of July's Protest Demonstrations on the November 23 District Council Elections - A Pre-election Assessment Report, November 17, 2003
• NDI Hong Kong Report 7: The Promise of Democratization in Hong Kong, Accountability Without Democracy? The Principal Officials Accountability System in Hong Kong,October 18, 2002
• NDI Hong Kong Report 6: The Promise of Democratization in Hong Kong: The 2002 Chief Executive Election and Transition Five Years after Reversion, March 11, 2002
• NDI Hong Kong Report 5: The Promise of Democratization in Hong Kong: The May 24 1998 Elections, July 30, 1998
• NDI Hong Kong Report 4: The Promise of Democratization in Hong Kong: The May 24, 1998 Elections - A Pre-Election Report, May 15, 1998
• NDI Hong Kong Report 3: The Promise of Democratization in Hong Kong: Autonomy and the Rule of Law, May 1, 1998
• NDI Hong Kong Report 2: The Promise of Democratization in Hong Kong: The New Election Framework, October 23, 1997
• NDI Hong Kong Report 1: The Promise of Democratization in Hong Kong: Report of the NDI Survey Mission, June 10, 1997

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