(From left to right) Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Erick Tsang Kwok-wai, Chief Secretary for Administration Chan Kowk-ki, Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu, Secretary for Justice Paul Lam Ting-Kwok, and Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs Alice Mak Mei-kuen hold a press conference on the reform of district councils at Hong Kong Central Government Office on May 2, 2023. (CALVIN NG / CHINA DAILY)

HONG KONG – The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government vehemently objected on Thursday to the European Union's comments on the reform of the district councils and its remarks about the HKSAR's democratic development.

A spokesperson for the SAR government said in a statement that since 2020, many of the sixth-term district council members acted against the functions of the councils, including disrupting the conduct of meetings and unscrupulously taking actions that were not in line with the functions of the councils as district advisory organizations.

A number of the members “even used district councils as a platform to challenge our country's sovereignty, advocate independence of Hong Kong and endanger national security,” the spokesperson said.

The purpose of improving governance at district level is to enhance the functions of the district councils and reform their composition, so that the councils can return to the positioning under Article 97 of the Basic Law, which are advisory and service bodies that are not organizations of political power to be consulted by the HKSAR government on district administration and other affairs.

Spokesperson for the HKSAR government

“The chaos is a wake-up call for us,” the spokesperson stressed, adding that the government must plug the institutional loopholes and exclude those anti-China and destabilizing forces from the district councils in a bid to implement the principle of “patriots administering Hong Kong”.

The spokesperson reiterated that there was necessity and urgency to reform the district councils In order to put the advisory organizations on the right track.

“The purpose of improving governance at district level is to enhance the functions of the district councils and reform their composition, so that the councils can return to the positioning under Article 97 of the Basic Law, which are advisory and service bodies that are not organizations of political power to be consulted by the HKSAR government on district administration and other affairs,” the spokesperson explained.

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Having a variety of methods for the formation of the district councils enabled those who loved the country and Hong Kong to participate in the work of the district councils through a variety of channels, thereby reflecting public opinion more comprehensively, the spokesperson said.

By restoring the district councils to their positioning under the Basic Law, the principle of “patriots administering Hong Kong” would be fully implemented institutionally, the spokesperson said, adding that the councils could again carry out their service and advisory functions, and cooperate with the government to conduct district work.

Deputy Secretary of Justice Horace Cheung Kwok-kwan (right) seeks a resident's signature in support of  the proposal for improving district administration and building a better community near Kwai Chung Plaza in the New Territories on May 11, 2023. The street stand activity was organized by the Federation of Trade Unions. (ANDY CHONG / CHINA DAILY)

Meanwhile, efficacy of district governance would be enhanced, thereby achieving good governance and giving residents a greater sense of well-being, the spokesperson added.

When the colonial government set up the District Boards in the 1980s, the electoral component was much smaller than today's proposal, but there was not a word of criticism leveled at the British government from the then European Community, which was the predecessor of the EU, the spokesperson stressed

The spokesperson pointed out that neither the Sino-British Joint Declaration nor the Basic Law contained a single word stipulating that the district councils or district organizations were formed through election, even though the declaration was mentioned in the EU's statement.

“To describe the district councils as part of the so-called 'democratic development' is merely an unfounded and deliberate misrepresentation,” the spokesperson said.

When the colonial government set up the District Boards in the 1980s, the electoral component was much smaller than today's proposal, but there was not a word of criticism leveled at the British government from the then European Community, which was the predecessor of the EU, the spokesperson stressed.

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“It is obvious that the EU's statement was issued with a malicious intent to interfere in China's internal affairs by using 'democracy' as an excuse,” the spokesperson said.

The spokesperson urged the EU to stop interfering in Hong Kong matters, which are purely China's internal affairs, to clarify and apologize for the fallacies in its statement, and to understand carefully the concept and necessity of the proposal of improving governance at district level.