Hong Kong (CNN) -- At least 738,000 Hong Kongers have done something Chinas 1.3 billion people can only dream of: Cast a ballot to demand a democratic government. In an unofficial referendum organized by pro-democracy activists and denounced by Chinese authorities, a sizable number of residents in the city of more than seven million have called for the right to directly elect their next leader. But Beijing has insisted Hong Kong politics stays in line with Chinese rule, paving the way for a showdown in the city. Who are the activists? Occupy Central is a pro-democracy group founded in 2013. Their goal is to allow the Hong Kong public to elect its next leader without strings attached. If the Hong Kong government doesnt eventually give the public more voting rights, Occupy Central has threatened to occupy Central district, the citys financial hub, with a sit-in that would disrupt businesses and block traffic. How is Hong Kong governed now? Hong Kong is a Special Administrative Region of the Peoples Republic of China, with its own executive, legislature, and judiciary. A former British colony, the city was returned to Chinese control in 1997. But before the handover, China and the United Kingdom signed an agreement giving Hong Kong a high degree of autonomy for 50 years after its return to China. This enshrined a principle known as one country, two systems in a constitutional document called the Basic Law. Chinas warning to Hong Kong Thousands attend Tiananmen vigil in HK Tank Man photographer reflects A few weeks ago, the Chinese government released a strongly-worded white paper that said Hong Kong does not have full autonomy and asserted that ultimate power over the city lay with Beijing. But many pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong see this as a violation of one country, two systems.
Posted on: Wed, 25 Jun 2014 12:57:24 +0000
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