HONG KONG (XINHUA) – The Hong Kong government has clarified that the Sino-British joint declaration does not have any paragraph which sets out the implementation of “dual universal suffrage”.

In response to an organisation’s claim on a social media platform that “the fact that dual universal suffrage has yet been implemented in Hong Kong is a serious violation of the Sino-British Joint Declaration,” a spokesman for the Hong Kong government made the clarification on Thursday (Sept 19).

Paragraph 3(4) of the Sino-British Joint Declaration stipulates that “the chief executive (of the HKSAR) will be appointed by the Central People’s Government on the basis of the results of elections or consultations to be held locally”.

Annex I of the joint declaration stipulates that “the legislature of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region shall be constituted by elections”.

Both are not related to the implementation of “dual universal suffrage”, the spokesman said.

The spokesman reiterated that universal suffrage of “one person, one vote” for selecting the chief executive and electing all members of the Legislative Council is enshrined as an ultimate aim in the Basic Law of the HKSAR of the People’s Republic of China.

To achieve this aim, there is a need to conduct dialogues to narrow differences with a view to attaining a consensus agreeable to all sides, the spokesman said, adding that the Hong Kong government will assess the situation carefully and take forward constitutional development in accordance with the Basic Law and the relevant Interpretation and Decisions of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress.

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