Poll questions amid this pandemic

Hong Kong, 5 August 2020: A month ago, it would have been unimaginable to consider 80 new cases of coronavirus in Hong Kong as good news, but the goalposts have shifted as we fight the so-called third wave of infections. After 12 straight days of triple-digit increases, the number of fresh cases dropped to 80 on Monday, a figure that was repeated yesterday. These days, this represents progress.

Perhaps the strictest social distancing measures we have experienced thus far are having an effect. Introduced a week ago, these include mandatory mask wearing in outdoor public places, even while exercising, and limiting public gatherings to just two people. A complete ban on dine-in services at restaurants, however, was scrapped after just 24 hours when it was clearly seen to be unworkable, with the government reverting to its earlier policy of allowing in-dining from 5:00am to 6:00pm. Our city’s tally of confirmed infections now stands at 3,669 with 42 related fatalities – figures which, as I have stressed before, are way below most other jurisdictions but still alarming given our earlier success in combating Covid-19.

The major development this past week has been Chief Executive Carrie Lam’s decision to postpone September’s Legislative Council elections for a year, citing the pandemic as the reason for this. Amid the ensuing political fallout – the pro-government camp supporting her, opponents crying foul – a raft of questions remain unanswered. In short, what happens next? In her announcement, Lam said “the most pragmatic” way forward would be to extend LegCo’s current term for one year. It has since been confirmed that China’s top legislative body, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC), will make a decision on the outstanding legal and constitutional issues.

One of these concerns the fate of four serving LegCo members who, the day before Lam’s announcement, were among 12 opposition activists who were banned from standing in the polls. Election officials cited the national security law and previous appeals by pan-democrats for foreign governments to sanction Beijing and Hong Kong as key reasons for their disqualification. Will the four incumbent lawmakers be allowed to stay in office? An intriguing situation, to say the least.

The national security law continues to throw up fresh developments. France has just halted ratification of an extradition treaty with Hong Kong, prompting inevitable criticism from the governments both here and in Beijing. The move comes after a string of Western nations, including Canada, Britain, Australia and New Zealand, suspended their extradition agreements with Hong Kong over the national security law. Germany did likewise, but cited the delayed elections as the reason. China has responded by suspending Hong Kong’s extradition treaties with all these nations bar Germany, which may well be next.

We have seen four students detained by officers from the police’s new national security department. The quartet, held on suspicion of secession, were released on bail without being charged but were ordered to surrender their travel documents to prevent them from leaving the territory for the next sixth months. As well, the police have issued arrest warrants for six overseas-based democracy activists, the first use of the national security law’s extraterritorial provision.

These are interesting times in Hong Kong, to put it mildly, with politics, policing and a pandemic all vying for our attention. For some escapism, I will offer my latest travel blog, featuring adventures from Australia to the UK and various places in between before the coronavirus left us all grounded. I hope it will not be my final one this year.

Stay safe and well, everybody!

Colin Cohen
Senior Partner
Boase Cohen & Collins