{"id":1135711,"date":"2021-12-20T22:05:01","date_gmt":"2021-12-21T03:05:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1135711"},"modified":"2021-12-20T22:05:06","modified_gmt":"2021-12-21T03:05:06","slug":"communists-sweep-sham-hong-kong-election","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/communists-sweep-sham-hong-kong-election\/","title":{"rendered":"Communists Sweep Sham Hong Kong Election"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">12<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fcommunists-sweep-sham-hong-kong-election%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1135711&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p class=\"subheading\"><span>Chinese state media on Sunday trumpeted the \u201clandslide victory\u201d of pro-Beijing \u201cpatriotic\u201d candidates in Hong Kong, while governments across the free world expressed grave concerns about a sham election in which pro-democracy candidates were legally persecuted and prevented from running.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Hong Kongers evidently know a Communist scam when they see one, as turnout for the rigged election <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rfa.org\/english\/news\/china\/hongkong-elections-12192021164403.html\"><span>dropped<\/span><\/a><span> to just 30.2 percent \u2013 the lowest participation rate since the United Kingdom gave control of the island to China in 1997. Turnout was over 70 percent for District Council elections at the height of the 2019 protest movement, producing a genuine landslide victory for pro-democracy candidates. <\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"D-ROS-B1\" class=\"a8d\"><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"M-ROS-B1\" class=\"a8d\"><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"gmxrevmore\" class=\"H\"><\/figure>\n<p><span>The previous two legislative elections boasted over 50 percent turnout.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Hong Kong\u2019s Beijing-controlled chief executive Carrie Lam nevertheless <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/world\/pro-beijing-candidates-win-majority-seats-hong-kong-election\"><span>pronounced herself<\/span><\/a><span> \u201csatisfied\u201d with the results of Sunday\u2019s election, in which only \u201cpatriotic\u201d candidates loyal to the Chinese Communist Party were permitted to run, while many pro-democracy activists languished in prison.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cFor registered voters, deciding whether they want to exercise their voting rights in a particular election is entirely a matter for themselves,\u201d Lam sniffed. \u201cIn this election, 1.35 million voters cast their votes. They did not just return candidates of their choice to LegCo, and I think it was also because of their support for the improved electoral system.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"M-ROS-B2\" class=\"a8d\"><\/figure>\n<div id=\"attachment_19199610\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" readability=\"35\"><a href=\"https:\/\/media.breitbart.com\/media\/2021\/12\/GettyImages-1237348203.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-19199610\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/GettyImages-1237348203-1024x683-1.jpg\" alt width=\"990\" height=\"660\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\"><em>Starry Lee (bottom-C) speaks at a press conference with party members in Hong Kong on December 20, 2021 as Pro-Beijing candidates swept to victory in a \u201cpatriots only legislature vote that saw record low turnout from voters and government loyalists sweep every seat. (PETER PARKS\/AFP via Getty)<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><span>The system was \u201cimproved\u201d by banning all candidates who publicly criticize the government of Hong Kong, officials in Beijing, or the Chinese Communist Party, an exercise of tyranny justified under the \u201cnational security law\u201d <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.breitbart.com\/asia\/2020\/06\/30\/chinas-hong-kong-national-security-law-takes-effect-ending-free-speech\/\"><span>imposed<\/span><\/a><span> by the Chinese government in the summer of 2020 to crush the pro-democracy movement.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cThe government hasn\u2019t set any target for the voter turnout rate, not for this election, not for previous elections, because there is a combination of factors that will affect the voter turnout rate in any election,\u201d she insisted.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Lam argued the low turnout rate actually indicates high public trust in the government and sitting legislators, a claim dismissed by the pro-democracy League of Social Democrats as \u201cridiculous.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Hong Kongers expressed their disdain for the rigged election by spending Sunday cavorting in the island\u2019s parks. A picnic was held in West Kowloon to protest \u201cMinions Ruling Hong Kong.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Hong Kong\u2019s former administrative power, the United Kingdom, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.uk\/government\/news\/foreign-secretary-issues-joint-statement-with-international-partners-on-hong-kong-elections-20-december-2021\"><span>issued<\/span><\/a><span> a joint statement with the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand on Monday expressing \u201cgrave concern over the erosion of democratic elements\u201d in the island\u2019s electoral system:<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"M-ROS-B3\" class=\"a8d adSo\"><\/figure>\n<blockquote readability=\"19\">\n<p><span>Since handover, candidates with diverse political views have contested elections in Hong Kong. Yesterday\u2019s election has reversed this trend. The overhaul of Hong Kong\u2019s electoral system introduced earlier this year reduced the number of directly elected seats and established a new vetting process to severely restrict the choice of candidates on the ballot paper. These changes eliminated any meaningful political opposition. Meanwhile, many of the city\u2019s opposition politicians \u2013 most notably the majority of the \u201cNSL 47\u201d \u2013 remain in prison pending trial, with others in exile overseas.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>We also remain gravely concerned at the wider chilling effect of the National Security Law and the growing restrictions on freedom of speech and freedom of assembly, which are being felt across civil society. NGOs, trade unions and human rights organisations not supportive of the government\u2019s agenda have been forced to disband or leave, while media freedoms are being curtailed at pace.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span>The statement concluded by calling on the Chinese government to remember the promises to respect Hong Kong\u2019s autonomy and \u201cfundamental freedoms\u201d when it took control of the city in 1997.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Chinese state media, on the other hand, hailed the election as \u201ca firm step toward good-quality democracy in Hong Kong,\u201d as the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.globaltimes.cn\/page\/202112\/1242854.shtml\"><i><span>Global Times<\/span><\/i><\/a> <span>put it on Sunday.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"D-ROS-B2\" class=\"a8d\"><\/figure>\n<p><span>The <\/span><i><span>Global Times <\/span><\/i><span>amusingly insisted the election featured a vibrant slate of candidates who \u201chold different political views\u201d and were \u201chighly representative\u201d of the Hong Kong population. The candidates blocked from the race were supposedly \u201cradicals\u201d who are \u201cwilling to act as pawns for external forces.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The <\/span><i><span>Global Times <\/span><\/i><span>said the orderly voting on Sunday was a welcome contrast to the 2019 elections with their massive turnout, when \u201cviolence cast a shadow over Hong Kong\u201d and pro-Beijing politicians were \u201cthreatened, harassed, or even attacked.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cHong Kong and the Hong Kong people have had enough of these people trying to destabilize Hong Kong and China under the banner of \u2018democracy.\u2019 The national security law for Hong Kong passed in 2020 and the new electoral system adopted in 2021 will point the direction for Hong Kong\u2019s democracy,\u201d the Chinese Communist paper editorialized.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"M-ROS-B4\" class=\"a8d adSo\"><\/figure>\n<div id=\"attachment_19199650\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" readability=\"38\"><a href=\"https:\/\/media.breitbart.com\/media\/2021\/12\/GettyImages-1237325247.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-19199650\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/GettyImages-1237325247-1024x683-1.jpg\" alt width=\"990\" height=\"660\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\"><em>Supporters of Stanley Ng Chau Pei, president of Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions, hold placards during a Legislative Council election campaign on December 19, 2021 in Hong Kong, China. (Anthony Kwan\/Getty Images)<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"attachment_19199634\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" readability=\"35\"><a href=\"https:\/\/media.breitbart.com\/media\/2021\/12\/GettyImages-1237334523.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-19199634\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/GettyImages-1237334523-1024x683-1.jpg\" alt width=\"990\" height=\"660\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\"><em>Officials count ballots following the Legislative Council General Election on December 19, 2021 in Hong Kong, China.&nbsp; (Anthony Kwan\/Getty )<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><span>The <\/span><i><span>Global Times <\/span><\/i><span>dismissed Western concerns about the election as mere \u201cpropaganda\u201d intended to create a \u201cchaotic Hong Kong\u201d that would suit their geopolitical interests.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cSuch blatant interference in an election is the invasive behavior which the U.S. and Western countries often use to criticize other countries and regions. Now they are targeting Hong Kong with such tactics, which exposes their true intention and hypocrisy,\u201d the editorial railed.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The Chinese central government on Monday <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.globaltimes.cn\/page\/202112\/1242865.shtml\"><span>published<\/span><\/a><span> a farcical \u201cwhite paper\u201d certifying the robust health of democracy in Hong Kong.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The paper actually claimed democracy is better protected in Hong Kong than in the United States or United Kingdom, breezing past the pitiful turnout for Sunday\u2019s fixed contest to claim Hong Kongers are better able to shape their own government than citizens of Western powers, and the island is now more resistant to \u201cantagonistic forces\u201d like America and Britain now that \u201cunpatriotic\u201d candidates have been weeded out.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cIn the eyes of some experts, the new electoral system in Hong Kong is another vivid example that the city won\u2019t blindly follow the Western model of democracy, but adopt the system that is in line with its historical background and current situation,\u201d the <\/span><i><span>Global Times <\/span><\/i><span>said.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Chinese state media on Sunday trumpeted the \u201clandslide victory\u201d of pro-Beijing \u201cpatriotic\u201d candidates in Hong Kong, while governments across the free world expressed grave concerns about a sham election in &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":41,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1135711","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1135711","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/41"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1135711"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1135711\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1135711"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1135711"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1135711"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}