Known for defending, promoting and advancing Hong Kong's most controversial laws, the city state's former Secretary for Security John Lee is the most likely contender for becoming the next Chief Executive, taking over from Carrie Lam.
The moment Lee declared his candidacy for the top post this week, the new rule imposed by the Chinese Communist Party (CPC) last year ensured that he would be sworn in on July 1, the Washington Post reported.
Last year, Beijing overhauled Hong Kong's electoral system and specified that only "patriots", that is, those loyal to the Communist Party could run. The changes reduced the number of elective seats in the legislature, tightened rules on who could qualify and changed the representation of the committee that picks the chief executive.
On Wednesday, Lee offered a preview of his approach in a six-minute announcement of his candidacy, saying that the opportunity "to serve the people of Hong Kong is a glory."
"I shall inform you of my next move in detail," he said according to the report.
Described as withdrawn, thoughtful and quiet, Lee joined the Hong Kong police force as a probationary inspector in 1977, then under British rule.
In 2017, the current Chief Executive Carrie Lam promoted Lee to the secretary for security -- a move that set him on a trajectory to enforce and aid China's ambitions to rein in independent-minded Hong Kongers.
Lee later visited China's northwestern Xinjiang region and reported to lawmakers that all counterterrorism measures he saw there were "humane" and experienced "worth studying" for Hong Kong.
In early 2019, Lee helped Lam promote a controversial bill to allow extraditions from Hong Kong to mainland China. The legislation prompted anti-government protests that drew millions of people.
Lee as the head of security oversaw the crackdown, in which officers were seen repeatedly violating internal rules on the use of force.
Last June, Beijing appointed Lee as chief secretary, Hong Kong's second-highest political position. He became the first police officer to assume the role.
Selecting a former police officer instead of a civil servant underscores that "Beijing believes candidates from the disciplined services are more dependable, as they exhibit more political loyalty," said Ivan Choy Chi-keung, a political scientist at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, referring to institutions such as the police, corrections and fire services, as quoted by Washington Post.
"It is not important whether he (Lee) is down-to-earth, or humble or not," said Kenneth Chan Ka-lok, a former pro-democracy lawmaker and an associate professor at Hong Kong Baptist University. "What matters most is that Lee is a cadre appointed by Beijing. ... As long as he can serve his master well, Hong Kong's pro-establishment side will not have a voice that deviates far from his."
Hong Kong, under the terms of its 1997 handover to China, was promised autonomy with "Hong Kong people ruling Hong Kong." Representative elections are the end goal under the Basic Law which is Hong Kong's mini-constitution.
The Chief Executive will be selected in May by a handpicked panel of about 1,500 members of the political and business elite known as the election committee. Only one candidate is approved by Beijing, according to local media.
( With inputs from ANI )
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