Chinese authoritarian impact forced one of the last remaining pro-democracy parties in Hong Kong to dissolve itself on Saturday. The Civic Party joined a growing list of organisations that have been disbanded as pro-Chinese elements in Hong Kong’s administrative set-up continue to crack down on dissent and democratic values in the polity.
Civic Party chairman Alan Leong told reporters that the dissolution of the party was a “writing on the wall” as there was no one to take over. No members of the Civic Party nominated themselves for the executive positions effectively making the outfit disbanded.
Thirty of the 31 members voted to disband, while one person chose to abstain.
Hong Kong’s Civic Party: Who were they?
The party was founded in 2006. It was composed mostly of professionals, lawyers and academics.
Civic Party’s peak came in 2012 elections when it won six seats in the Hong Kong legislature. It was the city’s second-largest pro-democracy party after the Democratic Party.
Civic Party disbanded: Beijing’s crackdown after 2019 protests in spotlight
Several members of the Civic Party were charged with subversion under the sweeping national security law that was imposed by Beijing following massive 2019 protests.
The 2019 protests called for political freedoms that were promised to the semi-autonomous territory after its handover from Britain in 1997.
The members of the party were accused of participating in an unofficial primary to pick up the best candidates for the legislative elections that would allow the pro-democracy camp to win a majority of seats.
Authorities, however, claimed that the primary was aimed at subverting the government.
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In a written statement, party chairman Alan Leong thanked “all like-minded people who joined our long walk to democracy for different parts of the journey.”
“Today, the Civic Party is bidding Hong Kong farewell,” he wrote. “We hope Hong Kong people will live in the moment with a hopeful and not too heavy heart. Live in truth and believe in tomorrow.”
Since the national security law was passed, the city has undergone major changes to its political landscape.
An overhaul of Hong Kong’s electoral system was made to ensure that only “patriots” loyal to China would be able to take office.
More than 200 people have been arrested for allegedly committing acts that Beijing claims endanger its national security.
Many pro-democracy political organisations in Hong Kong have already been disbanded.
They include the 2019 protest organiser Civil Human Rights Front and the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, which was behind the annual Tiananmen Square vigil to mark the 1989 massacre in Beijing of pro-democracy activists by Chinese soldiers. The vigil has been banned for the last three years.
(With inputs from agencies)
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