Electoral staff prepare for vote counting at the central counting station at Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai, Hong Kong, Dec 19, 2021. (CALVIN NG / CHINA DAILY)
Hong Kong’s expatriate voters and pundits said Sunday’s Legislative Council election boost their confidence to the city’s future, as the first held under the improved electoral system leads the city closer to prosperity.
“It’s a real step forward for Hong Kong to put (the) past behind (us) and move forward to become one of the world’s greatest cities … and to move away from the frozen, rather fractious system which we had historically,” said Duncan Abate, a lawyer and a member of the Employers’ Federation of Hong Kong, a non-profit organization representing the interests of employers.
He said he hopes the new LegCo will ease the city’s polarization and take the city to prosperity.
Nury Vittachi, editor of fridayeveryday.com, an online news website based in Hong Kong, noted the participation of residents from all walks of life. “People from different camps, they are all coming out to vote, … There’s a whole range of people from workers, fishermen, teachers, nurses, all the way up to the business elites,” he said.
Voters are relieved to have a calm atmosphere around Sunday’s election, Vittachi said, compared to the previous District Council elections, which were full of tension.
He said he hopes to see a more inclusive new LegCo. “I hope the LegCo will have more diversified voices and calmness and could be more cohesive.”
Chandran Nair, CEO of pan-Asian think tank, The Global Institute for Tomorrow, said he has faith that those candidates contesting the election will contribute to the city and its people.
“One has to have faith that those people who talk about this (the election) have Hong Kong’s interests in mind, and those people who are to take office are very serious about this.”
William Stargel, who works in the software industry, said, “Everybody’s voice needs to be heard, and when offered the opportunity to vote, why wouldn’t you?”
Rosemary Terrance, who is from the United Kingdom and a director of Exchange HK, said she was excited to vote for the first time of an election in Hong Kong. “Hong Kong is a global city, … I want to be part of it,” she said. “I want to be part of what this is going forward.”
xinlanzeng@chinadailyhk.com