Lam visits China, Xi comments after HK elex

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday praised a new electoral system for Hong Kong, despite a sharp decline in voter turnout in the first election under the new rules over the weekend.

Voter turnout in Hong Kong sank to 30 percent in the first legislative election since Beijing amended the laws to reduce the number of directly elected lawmakers and vet candidates to ensure that only those loyal to China could run.

"It's a good system," Jinping said on Wednesday as he met with Hong Kong Chief Executive, Carrie Lam.

"The system provides a systematic foundation to ensure the steady implementation of "One Country Two Systems", and ensures Hong Kong's long term stability and prosperity," he said.

The rubber-stamp Chinese parliament in March passed a resolution to alter Hong Kong's election law that many saw as effectively ending the "one country, two systems" framework under which Hong Kong was to retain its separate legal, political and financial institutions for 50 years following the handover from Britain in 1997.

The assembly voted to give a pro-Beijing committee power to appoint more of Hong Kong's lawmakers, reducing the proportion of those directly elected and ensure that only those loyal to Beijing are allowed to run for office.

The move expanded the size of the chamber from 70 to 90 seats, with members of the Election Committee, a strongly pro-Beijing body responsible for electing the chief executive, comprising 40 of those.

Another 30 seats are elected by business groupings known as "functional constituencies."

The number of directly elected representatives was reduced from 35 to 20.

Five seats elected from among district councilors were abolished altogether.

The chairman of the Electoral Affairs Commission, announced on Sunday that about 1,350,680 people, or about 30.2% of registered voters, had cast ballots in the weekend election.

More than 50 percent voted in the two previous polls in 2012 and 2016.

IMAGE: AP