Elections and politics in Hong Kong: megathread

[MoreThanPolitics]

So the opposition has ceased to exist and democracy is all but finished in Hong Kong. What a woeful situation it has been for them.

China is rapidly going forward with the American model instead of a nation of different nationalities under one banner. From Tibet, to Xinjiang, to Hong Kong, and even to more loyal provinces like Outer Mongolia. They can do this only for as long as the people perceive they are prospering under the CCP government and for how well financed the security apparatus is.

Ultimately it cannot last forever, and we will see how well China can deal with inner pressure in due time alongside exterior pressure.

American model? Which American model? They just went full Han nationalism. But in this case (Hong Kong) it's more about reganing full control of City and liquidating this strange situation when authoritarian state has one democratic region

HK is never "democratic" to start with. The electoral system is designed to disproportionally favor the pro-Beijing camp, not to mention that the CCP has de-facto jurisdiction over HK. The closest we've ever had to democracy is during the Patten years, though.

It's like the Formosa Incident in Hong Kong, and things will become much worse in the foreseeable future. Keep in mind that it is only 6 days into 2021...

[MoreThanPolitics]

Happy 180th birthday, Hong Kong! You are more than a century older than the PRC.

[MoreThanPolitics]

Pro-Beijing party urges Hong Kong gov’t to set up committees to monitor district councillor oaths of loyalty

Hong Kong’s largest pro-Beijing party on Monday called on the government to establish monitoring committees to ensure district councillors abide by their soon-to-be mandatory oaths of allegiance. DAB members also called on the government to expedite the oath-taking arrangements to “set things right” among district councillors.

The government announced plans last Thursday to introduce amendments to local laws setting out mandatory oaths to be taken by the city’s 479 district councillors after the Lunar New Year. The new amendment will require all district councillors to swear to uphold the Basic Law and pledge allegiance to the city and detail the consequences for those deemed to have breached the oath.

Your reminder that Hong Kong has always been in minority rule since the transfer of sovereignty.

[MoreThanPolitics]

Happy 180th birthday, Hong Kong! You are more than a century older than the PRC.

What is the significance of January 26th in Hong Kong? All I see on English Wikipedia is an entry dated to January 20, 1841 for the Convention of Chuenpi.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Hong_Kong

January 26, 1841 is the date which Hong Kong became a colony of the United Kingdom, after the British set foot in present-day Hong Kong Island.

[MoreThanPolitics]

High Court unseats pro-democratic district councillor

https://news.rthk.hk/rthk/en/component/k2/1573667-20210202.htm

A Democratic Party district councillor was on Tuesday disqualified after the High Court ruled that he was unduly elected.

Hung Chun-hin was representing the Tsui Ping constituency of Kwun Tong District Council, after beating the then incumbent, Cheng Keung-fung, by fewer than 400 votes in polls in 2019.

But Cheng lodged an election petition, arguing that the democrat had made a false statement in election leaflets by accusing Cheng of being a "fake independent" candidate.

Cheng said that throughout his campaign, he had made it clear that he is a member of the pro-government group, Positive Synergy.

High Court judge Anderson Chow agreed that the statement Hung made was indeed false, and was made to prejudice the polls against Cheng.

The judge also ordered Hung to pay the legal costs of the case.

Keep in mind that it is only the beginning of the suppression against pro-democracy figures. After the Lunar New Year, the government is making every district councilor take the oath of office, where they have to swear loyalty to the government and the Basic Law.

Source: https://hongkongfp.com/2021/01/21/hong-kong-district-councillors-have-to-swear-loyalty-to-govt-top-official-says/

Fun fact: Elected at age 21 in 2019, Hung was one of the youngest district councilors ever elected in Hong Kong. Heck, he was still an undergraduate student when he was elected!

[MoreThanPolitics]

NYT: How Hong Kong’s Neighborhood Leaders Became Champions of Freedom

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/02/world/asia/hong-kong-democracy-councilors.html?smid=tw-nytimes&smtyp=cur

HONG KONG — Some days, Cathy Yau wanders down dark alleys looking for rats to poison. Other days, she helps food banks deliver meals to older people. Often her phone rings with calls from constituents: neighbors asking about their rights during a police stop-and-frisk, or how to best navigate the city’s welfare bureaucracy.

Such is life for a Hong Kong district councilor.

“I do things that nobody’s directed you to do, but which no one else would do if I didn’t,” she said.

Ms. Yau, a 37-year-old former police officer, is among the hundreds of pro-democracy candidates who were elected to local government offices in Hong Kong in November 2019 on a wave of anti-establishment sentiment that followed months of street protests.

As the political climate in Hong Kong has rapidly changed, the councilors’ advocacy for the Chinese territory’s fragile democratic institutions has made them the latest target of Communist Party officials in Beijing. In recent months, about 50 of the city’s 392 (note: should be 389) opposition councilors have been arrested on charges related to the 2019 protests, campaign finances and violations of a contentious anti-sedition law. (Cont'd)

[MoreThanPolitics]

Hong Kong to require district councillors to swear allegiance to gov’t – violators face election ban

https://hongkongfp.com/2021/02/23/breaking-hong-kong-to-require-district-councillors-to-swear-allegiance-to-govt-or-face-election-ban/

Hong Kong will introduce new requirements for district councillors to take an oath swearing to uphold the Basic Law and pledge allegiance to the government.

Those who violate their oaths will be barred from election for five years, the Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Erick Tsang announced on Tuesday. The ban will also apply to legislative councillors who are considered in violation of their loyalty pledges. (Cont'd)

[MoreThanPolitics]

https://twitter.com/jooeysiiu/status/1365913298441502725

The regime HAS to do this on February 28, huh?

[MoreThanPolitics]

WaPo: Dozens of Hong Kong pro-democracy activists charged under national security law
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/hong-kong-arrests-national-security-law/2021/02/28/7e6cd252-77ea-11eb-9489-8f7dacd51e75_story.html

HONG KONG — Some sat down for one last long meal with their partners. Another went to a tattoo artist who inked a Buddhist mantra on his forearm. One purchased new pink-rimmed glasses, ditching contact lenses that will be an inconvenience in jail.

Then, on Sunday afternoon, the Hong Kong pro-democracy activists fanned out to police stations across the territory, where more than 40 of them were officially charged with inciting subversion under the national security law, according to a list provided to lawyers. They were detained immediately, and face life in prison if found guilty.

The action against this large group represents the harshest and widest use of Beijing’s national security law in Hong Kong to date, dramatically increasing the number of people charged under the draconian legislation. They are expected to be denied bail and instead remain in detention before trial, like the five charged previously under the security law — a significant departure from Hong Kong’s common law system.

History repeats itself after what happened in Taiwan 41 years ago.

[MoreThanPolitics]

HKFP: Beijing vows to overhaul Hong Kong’s mini-constitution, tightening grip on elections
https://hongkongfp.com/2021/03/05/beijing-vows-to-overhaul-hong-kongs-mini-constitution-tightening-grip-on-elections/

A top Chinese politician announced plans on Friday to revise parts of Hong Kong’s constitution and institute sweeping political changes there in response to “chaos” in the city’s society.

One critic said the drastic changes would make future elections meaningless in the city, while a pro-Beijing politician in Hong Kong said the time was ripe to plug loopholes in the system.

Wang Chen, vice chairman of the National People’s Congress (NPC) standing committee, outlined the draft of the “NPC’s decision to improve the HKSAR’s electoral system” at the opening ceremony of the legislature’s annual meeting.

Welcome to the sham election era of Hong Kong. Just abolish them FFS!

[MoreThanPolitics]

CCP's new proposal is as follows:
- 20 from geographical constituencies (down from 35); 10 double-member seats to ensure Beijing loyalists always get half of the seats
- 30 from functional constituencies; 5 DC2 "super seats" abolished
- *40* newly-added Election Committee seats which also "picks" the Chief Executive

This ensures that the pro-democracy camp will never get more than 20/90 seats in the legislature despite having a 57-41 lead over the pro-Beijing camp (*2019 District Council election results)

But yeah, the CCP claimed that it was DeMoCrAtIc ReFoRmS wItH hOnG kOnG cHaRaCtErIsTiCs, where the percentage of popularly-elected seats dropped from 57% to 22%! We're one step closer to full democracy! /s  

Even in Macau, 42% (14/33) of the legislature is directly elected.

[MoreThanPolitics]

https://twitter.com/WSJ/status/1369977692523728901

[MoreThanPolitics]

https://twitter.com/phoebe_kongwy/status/1376783628164767746
The Hong Kong government CCP also made a propaganda booklet about the "election reforms":
https://www.cmab.gov.hk/improvement/filemanager/content/pdf/en/resource-centre/booklet.pdf

[MoreThanPolitics]

Openly calling people to cast blank/void votes in the upcoming "elections" can put you behind bars for three years.

https://twitter.com/galileocheng/status/1381897955972587523

[MoreThanPolitics]

Shouldn't this thread be renamed the "Hong Kong Electoral-type event megathread"?  You know things have gotten bad when Russian elections have more legitimacy than what's going on in Hong Kong these days.

Lol. Isn't OP the only person who can edit the thread name?

[MoreThanPolitics]

If you want to know how are things going for a pro-democratic district councilor right now, here you go.

While the current District Councils dominated by the pro-democracy camp have passed not even half of their 4-year term, it has been rumoured that District Councillors would be required to swear allegiance to the Hong Kong Special Administration Region and that some would be disqualified. Meanwhile, the pro-government camp has been setting up organizations across Hong Kong to monitor the district councils and demanding that the government makes District Councillors vow allegiance, so that those who violate the oath would be disqualified. How do the District Councillors carry on with their work amid this political environment?

[MoreThanPolitics]

Apologies if this is a very basic question, but what are the main sociological divides in HK politics besides the obvious (locals-mainlanders)? In addition to the pro-democracy/pro-CCP divide, do different parties in each coalition have significantly different support bases?

No worries at all! Disclaimer: Due to Beijing's crackdown of the pro-democratic movement and overhaul of the electoral system, this is about to be invalid in the future.

Of course there are sociological divides, but they are overwhelmed by the one major issue in Hong Kong politics: China. Also, since popularly-elected seats in Legislative Council (LegCo) elections are elected under proportional representation, it is common for pro-democratic candidates to claim "I have already secured enough votes, please vote for another candidate instead!" on election day to maximize the number of seats of their camp. Basically, LegCo elections in Hong Kong are just a game of vote allocation.

For the second part of your question, it should be noted that most "political parties" or political groups in Hong Kong are actually limited companies or societies due to the lack of legislation for political parties. You can read more at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_political_parties_in_Hong_Kong.

[MoreThanPolitics]

Tomorrow (May 12), HK's rubberstamp legislature will discuss on a newly-created oath-taking bill requiring district councilors to take an oath of office. If passed, district councilors have to pledge allegiance to Beijing and the government this month (or early June), and the bill is expected to pass this week.

However, over 20 district councilors, all of them pro-democracy, has either refused to take the oath and vowed to resign once the bill is passed, resigned early due to being detained for attending the primaries last year, disqualified due to pleading guilty to attending a Tiananmen vigil last year that police claimed was an "illegal assembly", and resigned because of personal reasons. List (hopefully) coming soon.  

[MoreThanPolitics]

Tomorrow (May 12), South Shenzhen HK's rubberstamp legislature will discuss on a newly-created oath-taking bill requiring district councilors to take an oath of office. If passed, district councilors have to pledge allegiance to Beijing and the government this month (or early June), and the bill is expected to pass this week.

However, over 20 district councilors, all of them pro-democracy, has either refused to take the oath and vowed to resign once the bill is passed, resigned early due to being detained for attending the primaries last year, disqualified due to pleading guilty to attending a Tiananmen vigil last year that police claimed was an "illegal assembly", and resigned because of personal reasons. List (hopefully) coming soon.  

5/12 Update: Unsurprisingly, the bill was passed with near-unanimous support in LegCo this evening. It is expected to take effect on May 21.

https://hongkongfp.com/2021/05/12/hong-kong-lawmakers-pass-bill-requiring-public-officers-to-pledge-allegiance-to-govt-four-district-councillors-to-be-ousted/

[MoreThanPolitics]

Hong Kong officials warn 30-odd district councilors over Tiananmen Square commemorations
(From Apple Daily, June 8, 2021)

https://web.archive.org/web/20210621131906/https://en.appledaily.com/hong-kong-officials-warn-30-odd-district-councilors-over-tiananmen-square-commemorations/KAG5JN6GFJD3TNNJH53GEAAS3M

More than 30 directly elected district councilors received warnings from the Hong Kong government after they planned events to commemorate victims of the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown.

The government’s Home Affairs Department issued warning letters to the councilors, saying they might have breached Hong Kong’s laws by distributing candles to people. The councilors had encouraged others to take part in an unauthorized assembly, and their activities were “unrelated to the District Council’s work” and “undermine district harmony,” the department said.

Many Hongkongers and activists came up with their own ways to mark the anniversary of the June 4, 1989, crackdown last Friday after authorities banned an annual mass candlelit vigil at Victoria Park for a second year.

Well, if the government needs a new excuse to disqualify the district councilors who are "ungrateful" to the regime, there it is. This year is the 100th anniversary of CCP's founding, after all. Even pro-Beijing duds who once opposed the Tiananmen crackdowns in 1989 are now supportive of it.

[MoreThanPolitics]

Updated July 13, 2021: Forget this. At this point, the regime is more likely to disband all district councils and end its 40-year history.

Format: Constituency code, name of constituency, name of district councilor, cause(s) of vacancy, date of vacancy

Vacant seats as of June 23, 2021:

Central & Western:

• A01 Chung Wan 中環: Ted Hui Chi-fung 許智峯, self-exiled since December 2020, never resigned but seat revoked May 29, 2021
• A02 Mid Levels East 半山東: Ng Siu-hong 吳兆康, resigned for unspecified reasons, vacant since May 1, 2021
• A06 Kwun Lung 觀龍: Fergus Leung Fong-wai 梁晃維, currently detained under NSL for participating in LegCo primary, vacant since May 1, 2021
• A07 Kennedy Town & Mount Davis 堅摩: Cherry Wong Kin-ching 黃健菁, resigned for health reasons, vacant since June 4, 2021
• A15 Water Street 水街: Louis Ho Chi-wang 何致宏, resigned for health reasons, vacant since May 27, 2021

Wan Chai:

• No vacancies yet

Eastern:

• C08 Heng Fa Chuen 杏花邨: Christine Wong Yi 黃宜, resigned for health reasons, vacant since April 1, 2021
• C12 King Yee 景怡: Phoenix Tsang Yan-ying 曾因瑩, refused to take the oath of office, vacant since June 1, 2021
• C17 Fortress Hill 炮台山: Jason Chan Ka-yau 陳嘉佑, refused to take the oath of office, vacant since June 1, 2021
• C20 Fort Street 堡壘: Karrine Fu Kai-lam 傅佳琳, refused to take the oath of office, vacant since June 1, 2021
• C22 Tanner 丹拿: Tat Cheng Tat-hung 鄭達鴻, arrested under NSL for participating in LegCo primary (currently on bail), vacant since May 11, 2021
• C34 Yue Wan 漁灣: Andy Chui Chi-kin 徐子見, currently detained under NSL for participating in LegCo primary, vacant since May 10, 2021

Southern:

• D13 Tin Wan 田灣: Tiffany Yuen Ka-wai 袁嘉蔚, currently detained under NSL for participating in LegCo primary, vacant since May 21, 2021

Yau Tsim Mong:

• No vacancies yet

Sham Shui Po:

• F15 Mei Foo South 美孚南: Eunice Chau Yuen-man 周琬雯, resigned for personal reasons, vacant since June 1, 2021

Kowloon City:

• G17 To Kwa Wan South 土瓜灣南: Timothy Lee Hin-long 李軒朗, unseated by the High Court after losing election petition by defeated pro-Beijing candidate (also left HK), vacant since March 25, 2021

Wong Tai Sin:

• H11 Wang Tau Hom 橫頭磡: Carmen Lau Ka-man 劉珈汶, refused to take the oath of office, vacant since June 9, 2021
• H15 Chuk Yuen North 竹園北: Cheng Tsz-kin 鄭梓健, resigned for personal reasons, vacant since June 1, 2021

Kwun Tong:

• J04 Lai Ching 麗晶: Anthony Bux Sheik 畢東尼, resigned for health reasons, vacant since June 1, 2021
• J29 Tsui Ping 翠屏: Hinson Hung Chun-hin 洪駿軒, unseated by the High Court after losing election petition by defeated pro-Beijing candidate, vacant since May 4, 2021
• J33 Hip Hong 協康: Kinda Li Ka-tat 李嘉達, currently detained under NSL for participating in LegCo primary, vacant since April 19, 2021
• J37 Hong Lok 康樂: Chris Chan Ka-yin 陳嘉言, refused to take the oath of office, vacant since June 1, 2021

Tsuen Wan:

• K04 Hoi Bun 海濱: Lester Shum 岑敖暉, sentenced to prison for attending June 4th assembly in 2020 (also detained under NSL for participating in LegCo primary), vacant since May 21, 2021
• K11 Ma Wan 馬灣: Roy Tam Hoi-pong 譚凱邦, currently detained under NSL for participating in LegCo primary, vacant since April 20, 2021

Tuen Mun:

• L11 San Hui 新墟: Sam Cheung Ho-sum 張可森, currently detained under NSL for participating in LegCo primary, vacant since May 11, 2021
• L12 So Kwun Wat 掃管笏: Ma Kee 馬旗, refused to take the oath of office, vacant since June 1, 2021

Yuen Long:

• M12 Shap Pat Heung West 十八鄉西: Szeto Pok-man 司徒博文, refused to take the oath of office, vacant since June 1, 2021
• M27 Kingswood North 嘉湖北: Lucifer "Mr. K" Ng Kin-wai 伍健偉, currently detained under NSL for participating in LegCo primary, vacant since May 10, 2021
• M32 Tin Heng 天恒: Henry Wong Pak-yu 王百羽, currently detained under NSL for participating in LegCo primary, vacant since May 5, 2021
• M35 Fairview Park 錦綉花園: To Ka-lun 杜嘉倫, refused to take the oath of office, vacant since May 1, 2021

North:

• N06 Yan Shing 欣盛: Mary Lam Shuk-ching 林淑菁, resigned for family reasons, vacant since June 1, 2021
• N09 Ching Ho 清河: Sea Yuen Ho-lun 袁浩倫, refused to take the oath of office, vacant since June 1, 2021
• N13 Shek Wu Hui 石湖墟: Lam Cheuk-ting 林卓廷, currently detained under NSL for participating in LegCo primary, vacant since March 31, 2021

Tai Po:

• P01 Tai Po Hui 大埔墟: Nick Lam Ming-yat 林名溢, resigned for health reasons, vacant since May 12, 2021
• P08 Kwong Fuk & Plover Cove 廣福及寶湖: Dalu Lin Kok-cheung 連桷璋, resigned due to the
  "increasing restraints brought by the job", vacant since May 11, 2021
• P12 San Fu 新富: Max Wu Yiu-cheong 胡耀昌, refused to take the oath of office, vacant since May 11, 2021
• P17 Hong Lok Yuen 康樂園: Manson Yiu Yeuk-sang 姚躍生, resigned for health reasons, vacant since May 17, 2021

Sai Kung:

• Q07 Kin Ming 健明: Leung Li 梁里, refused to take the oath of office, vacant since June 1, 2021
• Q19 Yan Ying 欣英: Ben Chung Kam-lun 鍾錦麟, currently detained under NSL for participating in LegCo primary, vacant since May 11, 2021
• Q21 Wan Hang 運亨: Gary Fan Kwok-wai 范國威, currently detained under NSL for participating in LegCo primary, vacant since March 16, 2021
• Q29 Kwan Po 軍寶: Jacky Lai Ming-chak 黎銘澤, refused to take the oath of office, vacant since May 1, 2021

Sha Tin:

• R04 City One 第一城: Leticia Wong Man-huen 黃文萱, refused to take the oath of office, vacant since June 4, 2021
• R32 Kam Ying 錦英: Andy Ting Tsz-yuen 丁仕元, resigned for family reasons, vacant since June 1, 2021

Kwai Tsing:

• S06 Kwai Chung Estate South 葵涌邨南: Ivan Wong Yun-tat 黃潤達, refused to take the oath of office, vacant since June 1, 2021
• S08 Shek Yam 石蔭: Andrew Wan Siu-kin 尹兆堅, currently detained under NSL for participating in LegCo primary, vacant since May 11, 2021
• S14 Kwai Fong 葵芳: Leung Yiu-chung 梁耀忠, lost seat for organizing "illegal assemblies" in 2019 (sentenced for 8 months and given a year's suspension)
• S16 Wah Lai 華麗: Sin Chung-kai 單仲偕, lost seat for attending "illegal assemblies" in 2019 (sentenced for 14 months and given 2 years' suspension)

Islands:

• No vacancies yet

[MoreThanPolitics]

District councilors to take oaths in July with over 170 expected to be disqualified: The Standard, June 16, 2021

https://www.thestandard.com.hk/breaking-news/section/4/174655/District-councilors-to-take-oaths-in-July-with-over-170-expected-to-be-disqualified

District councilors in Hong Kong will be taking an oath of allegiance in July, with over 170 of them expected to be disqualified and unseated, according to reports.

[...]

It is reported that authorities are drawing up a “negative list” as a criterion for breach of oath or invalidation of oaths, which affect at least three types of district councilors.

They include those who participated in the “35+” primary election of the pan-democrats last year, those who allowed their office to be used as polling stations for the primary, and those who signed a joint statement pledging they would use the LegCo’s power to veto budget bills to compel the chief executive to respond to the 2019 protest movement’s demands.

Preliminary calculation based on the “negative list” shows that at least 170 district councilors will be disqualified, including 11 and 7 chairmen and vice-chairmen of the district council respectively.

All district councillors of the Civic Party and Neo Democrats are expected to be disqualified given the two parties have both signed the joint statement, while the Democratic Party will also lose at least 50 seats due to the councilors using their office as polling stations.

About 43.7% of pro-democratic district councilors elected in 2019 are poised to lose their seats next month. Including >40 who resigned early or are currently in prison, only less than half will survive. This is only the government's first step: it might demand disqualified representatives to repay public funds over their 18-month tenures (a la Singapore's PAP), and the district councilors who have survived the purge can be disqualified anytime.

Oh, and don't forget the almighty NSL!

[MoreThanPolitics]

Shameless self-promotion:

https://twitter.com/MoreThanPol/status/1407831803277156356

[MoreThanPolitics]

Apparently, the regime vowed to disqualify at least 230 district councilors, which is almost 60% of all pro-democratic slate elected in 2019 (or 67% if you take out all councilors who left office before this month), based on the following criteria which the regime called the "naughty negative list". If a district councilor:

• let their offices be used as polling stations for last July's LegCo primaries;
• signed the pledge to vote down the LegCo’s budget proposal unless the government agreed to the "five demands" (note: NeoDemocrats and Civic Party signed the pledge in the name of their respective parties, which led to an exodus of councilors from the two groups in June and the dissolution of the former. Despite that, the regime still insisted the party departees did such just to avoid charges, and would still be disqualified regardless)
• signed an online petition last year calling the US to discontinue the special trade status with HK
• displayed the slogan "Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times" (or literally any protest merchandise, but who knows) in offices

Those meeting at least one criterion will result in instant disqualification, and have to repay all salaries, subsidies and allowances over the past 18 months worth over 1 million dollars *per councilor* if they don't voluntary resign.

Since July 7, 194 councilors (including 1 independent who belongs to neither camp) have already quit their seats at the time of writing this post. Wong Tai Sin District Council becomes the emptiest chamber with 22/25 (88%)* seats vacant, followed by Central & Western (12/15 or 80%) and Southern (13/17 or 76.5%).

*as of 11:35pm HKT, 07/13/2021

TL;DR: You started your new job in January 2020. A year and a half later, your employer suddenly added a new provision to the contract only to fire you for being “unpatriotic”. Despite getting fired, your employer still forces you to repay all salaries and allowances worth over USD $120K you have earned over your tenure, which is supported by only ~18% of your fellow employees.

[MoreThanPolitics]

Interview: Now Macau’s pro-democracy politicians face a Hong Kong-style crackdown (Hong Kong Free Press, July 13, 2021)

After almost 30 years as one of Macau’s token few pro-democracy lawmakers, Ng Kuok-cheong finally faces the end of the road – barred from standing in the casino city’s upcoming legislative election in September.

Announced last Friday, the Macau electoral commission’s sweeping decision to remove all 21 pro-democracy contenders from the race came without warning.

They were deemed ineligible because they had allegedly failed to uphold the Basic Law and bear allegiance to Macau, Hong Kong’s sister Special Administrative Region of China, based on evidence presented by police.

Macau electoral officials who made the announcement did not give details of the evidence. The legislative hopefuls, from six electoral tickets, were notified of their disqualification on Friday.

For the first time ever, authorities in Southeast Zhuhai Macau decided to disqualify 21 pro-democracy candidates, including two incumbent legislators, from running in September's Legislative Assembly elections based on their "criticism" of the CCP (yeah, you read this right). You know what's ironic? Macau's legislature would have a larger proportion of directly-elected seats than Hong Kong come 2022.

Even being ever-obedient doesn't stop Winnie the Pooh from going berserk.