However, while most civil servants were able to cling to the train, all legislators and local council members were unceremoniously kicked off it. China argued that the elections which put them in office contravened the Basic Law. The Legislative Council was replaced by a provisional body, 'elected' by a 400-strong Selection Committee, set up by China back in November 1996. This body, principally consisting of business tycoons and members of pro-China political parties and trade unions, only allowed those from the old body back in if they could be relied upon to support the new order and, at worst, provide no more than token opposition. Members of the old, less influential, local councils were allowed back into office, even though their membership included opponents of the new regime.
Deng Xiaoping's promise that anyone can serve in governing Hong Kong, no matter whether they believe in capitalism or feudalism, or even the slave-owning system, has tong been forgotten. Membership of Chinese advisory bodies, such as the selection Committee and the Preparatory Committee, the body that made preparations for Chinese rule, were, with few exceptions, confined to those who were prepared to toe the party line.
If there is the smallest doubt about China's inability to live with the concept of free elections, it can be laid to rest by closely examining the Basic Law, which, on the one hand, promises the eventual introduction of universal suffrage and, on the other, stipulates that no more than 20 percent of the members of the legislature are allowed to hold foreign passports (Article 67).
This is no small matter in Hong Kong, where a high proportion of the middle class has the right of abode overseas. However, that is not the point: the real issue is how, under a truly democratic system, it can be possible to determine in advance the proportion of people who will be elected holding foreign passports. This may seem a pedantic point but it is most telling in providing an insight into China's mentality on the issue of elections, which simply cannot accommodate the nation of not knowing their outcome in advance.
Fundamentally at issue is the matter of Hong Kong's autonomy. Deng Xiaoping coined the slogan gangren zhigang, which translates as Hong Kong people ruling (or administering) Hong Kong. "That will not change," said Mr. Deng in an address to Hong Kong and Macao representatives attending National Day celebrations in Beijing in 1984. 'The administration will be elected by the people there are then appointed by the Central Government, they will not be sent by the Central Government. Of course, some of them should be on the Left, but as few as possible; some should be on the Right; and preferably a larger number should be middle-on-the-roaders. In this way, people from different walks of life will be satisfied."
