HONG KONG • A pro-democracy candidate in Hong Kong has been given last-minute clearance to stand for election, after public anger at government meddling in vote nominations as Beijing increases pressure on the city’s activists..
HONG KONG • A pro-democracy candidate in Hong Kong has been given last-minute clearance to stand for election, after public anger at government meddling in vote nominations as Beijing increases pressure on the city’s activists.
The decision to approve the nomination of Mr Edward Yiu yesterday, hours before the deadline, came two days after his fellow pro-democracy candidate Agnes Chow, 21, was barred from standing because her party supports self-determination for Hong Kong.
Around 2,000 people gathered outside government headquarters on Sunday night to protest against Ms Chow’s disqualification.
Mr Yiu said his approval was «absolutely not worth rejoicing over» in the light of the government’s «evil acts». He told reporters: «I’m really very angry because it reflects that the government has manipulated the whole system, trying to control the result of the by-election.»
He said that after submitting his nomination form for a by-election in March, he was asked a range of detailed questions by an electoral officer, including details of a trip to a political conference in Taiwan.
