Pro-Democracy bloc sweeps Hong Kong district polls

Pro-Democracy bloc sweeps Hong Kong district polls

Hong Kong: Pro-democracy candidates on Monday claimed a resounding victory in all Hong Kong districts, winning 388 of 452 district council seats. The alliance of pro-Beijing parties suffered a heavy blow, according to results on Monday, winning just 59 seats after going into the poll with almost 300, Efe news reported. Independent candidates won five seats in the election, which saw a record turnout of 71.2 per cent. “The candidates from the Democratic camp and allies won this election,” lawyer Fed Li, a Democratic Party leader, told reporters on Monday. “We hope our Chief Executive, Carrie Lam, received the same message, because the votes are the voice of the Hong Kong people.”

Li said the results mean the local government should listen to the protesters’ demands, which include universal suffrage and the release of political prisoners, and “especially setting up an independent inquiry into the incidents (of alleged police violence) in the past six months of protests”. In a statement, Lam, the Chief Executive of the Special Administered Region, admitted that the results “reflect people’s dissatisfaction with the current situation and the deep-seated problems in society”, adding that her government would “listen to the opinions of members of the public humbly and seriously reflect”.

But Lam, who is backed by Beijing and pro-mainland parties, made no mention of the possibility of her stepping down, one of the protesters’ main demands, and an issue which was debated by the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB), whose president Starry Lee admitted the elections represented a “big setback”. Lee offered to step down as leader of the party - which only won 21 seats despite fielding 181 candidates. But the party’s central committee rejected her resignation as it considered the election defeat a “collective failure”.

According to the results, pro-democracy politicians would now control all the 18 districts of Hong Kong, completely reversing the dominance of pro-establishment block. The unexpected landslide majority of the Opposition is also important because it could help them establish a bigger presence in the committee of 1,200 members which is set to elect the next chief executive of Hong Kong, which has been traditionally dominated by Beijing allies. (IANS)

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