DAB chief praises CE for inspiring governance

Lam's willingness to visit districts, and tell officials to do so, wins plaudits

Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor's new administration has started off quite well and the social atmosphere has improved, according to Starry Lee Wai-king, head of the city's largest political party.

Lam and her governance team were very hard-working, said Lee, chairwoman of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong.

Lam has personally made district visits to gather input from residents and also asks principal officials to go to the districts and meet the people.

These factors were aided by President Xi Jinping's visit to Hong Kong during the 20th anniversary of the city's return to the motherland, during which he clearly spelt out the bottom line of "one country, two systems". The visit of the aircraft carrier, Liaoning, also helped improve the atmosphere.

"The chief executive also shows she values executive-legislative relations, coming to the Legislative Council on the first Wednesday after taking office," Lee said, praising Lam in an exclusive interview with China Daily.

Recently, the court disqualified several opposition lawmakers, and sent student activists who stormed the LegCo Complex and broke into the forecourt of the east wing of the Central Government Offices to jail in lieu of community services following a review of sentences.

She saw the positive side of the rulings. "The judgments are useful deterrents, dispatching a clear message that those who resort to violence and break the law will pay the price. So recently, society has seen more peace and less confrontation," she observed.

Lee said she was caught by surprise by the new challenge that appeared on university campuses with a resurgence of "Hong Kong independence" advocacy in the new semester.

Asked if "Hong Kong independence" is a real threat or false issue, she said: "I won't say it is false. Some things may become real if they are uttered many times. Shortly after Hong Kong's return to the country, very few people talked about 'independence', but now it spreads around like toxin and appears on the 'democracy walls' of the universities.

"We must not feel complacent to let it spread or let people exploit the students to spread 'independence'. Otherwise, the central government will worry 'one country, two systems' is jeopardized, thus harming mutual trust and prompting it to tighten up."

Predicting big challenges when LegCo re-convenes next month, Lee foresees chaos, instead of peace, plaguing the legislature.

"First, we will handle the controversial co-location arrangement at West Kowloon Station. We will also proceed to amend the Rules of Procedure, while enactment of the National Anthem Law is not far away," she said.

joseph@chinadailyhk.com

(HK Edition 09/21/2017 page4)