China has finalized a sweeping plan to ensure leaders in Beijing control the outcome of Hong Kong’s elections, a move that could deepen already-fraught relations with Western nations.
President Xi Jinping on Tuesday signed orders to amend Hong Kong’s Basic Law, the official Xinhua News Agency reported, after revisions were passed by the National People’s Congress Standing Committee. The move provides more details on changes approved by China’s legislature on March 12 that called for a "review committee” to vet qualifications of election candidates to ensure they are all patriots loyal to the Communist Party in Beijing.
Chinese lawmakers plan to put fewer than 10 people — all chosen by national security officials — on a committee to vet any candidates for top elected positions in Hong Kong, the South China Morning Post reported. Other changes include expanding the number of Legislative Council seats to 90 from 70, reducing the number of directly elected seats in the chamber to 20 from 35, and granting the city’s newly enlarged Election Committee the ability to appoint 40 of the city’s lawmakers, the SCMP reported.