Editor’s note: This is the seventh of a series focusing on the “one country, two systems” principle.

The governance model of Hong Kong, though different from that of the Chinese mainland, is part of the national governance system and thus should be compatible with the political structure of the nation. For this reason, an executive-led system is prescribed by the Basic Law for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. 

It is imperative for the political structure to be designed in a way that is conducive to good governance, which is essential to maintaining social stability and development. It was the most strenuous work to design a political structure for the HKSAR in the whole process of drafting the Basic Law, which must take two aspects into consideration. From the central government’s perspective, the political structure must provide it with a mechanism to maintain its sovereign power over the HKSAR, or the proposed high degree of autonomy would become full autonomy; an executive-led system with the chief executive as the core provides the best of such mechanisms. From Hong Kong’s perspective, the political structure must be conducive to retaining what has made Hong Kong successful in the past to maintain the city’s stability and prosperity after the reunification; the executive-led arrangement is no doubt among the significant elements that have contributed to Hong Kong’s past success, therefore it can be retained after some modifications. 

It is the executive branch that is the most direct interface between the HKSAR and central government. This explains the significance of the executive-led system to the HKSAR as well as the implementation of “one country, two systems”

According to the Basic Law, the central authorities supervise the executive, legislature and judiciary in the HKSAR in different ways and dimensions. Hong Kong has an independent judiciary, and members of the Legislative Council are elected by local electorates; whereas the locally elected CE must be appointed by the central government. Likewise, the HKSAR’s principal officials are appointed by the central government after they are nominated by the chief executive, who must also carry out the directives issued by the central government. The chief executive is the head and representative of the HKSAR, and is also the head of the HKSAR government who is in charge of the executive branch. The chief executive is accountable to both the HKSAR and the central government, and is obligated to pay annual duty visits to Beijing. The design of “dual function” and “dual accountability” for the post of the chief executive is so unique in the SAR’s establishment that it highlights the authority of the chief executive and the dominance of the executive authorities in the governance system.  

Obviously, it is the executive branch that is the most direct interface between the HKSAR and central government. This explains the significance of the executive-led system to the HKSAR as well as the implementation of “one country, two systems”. According to the Basic Law, any proposal for the election of the chief executive via universal suffrage should be submitted to the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress for approval; any proposal for the election of members of the Legislative Council via universal suffrage should be reported to the NPC Standing Committee for the record. The different requirements for the election of the chief executive and members of LegCo via universal suffrage indicate that the central government attaches more importance to the executive than the legislature.   

Although the Basic Law does not contain the term “executive-led system”, Chapter 4, “Political Structure”, highlights the dominance of the executive authorities by prescribing the functions of the chief executive, the executive authorities, the legislature, the judiciary, district organizations and public servants in that order. 

This arrangement is distinct from those of many countries and regions whose constitutional documents put their legislature ahead of the executive branch. This deliberate distinction unmistakeably reflects the legislative intent of prescribing an executive-led system for the HKSAR.   

The central government maintains its overall jurisdiction over Hong Kong based on the Basic Law, and mainly relies on the chief executive and the HKSAR government in doing so. The notion that the central government relies on the Basic Law and the chief executive to govern Hong Kong is not without a reason.

On the 10th and 20th anniversary of the enactment of the Basic Law, then-NPC Standing Committee chairmen Wu Bangguo and Zhang Dejiang noted that the unique design of the executive-led system is compatible with the SAR’s constitutional status. They said that such a design meets the needs of the city as an international commercial and financial center for good governance. The executive-led system, which retains what has worked well in the old system, “is the best system for the sustainable development of Hong Kong”.

The author is a veteran current affairs commentator. 

The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.