《TAIPEI TIMES 焦點》 DPP backs Hong Kong lawmakers barred by Beijing

By Chen Wei-han / Staff reporter

The Democratic Progressive Party （DPP） caucus yesterday pledged to support two pro-independence Hong Kong lawmakers who could be barred from taking office by Beijing for altering their oath of office during their inauguration ceremonies.

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DPP legislators threw their support behind Hong Kong legislative councilors-elect Sixtus “Baggio” Leung （梁頌恆） and Yau Wai-ching （游蕙禎）, who altered their oaths during their swearing-in ceremonies last month and displayed a flag that said “Hong Kong is not China,” which their DPP counterparts said was an expression of freedom of speech.

The National People’s Congress in Beijing yesterday delivered an interpretation of Hong Kong’s Basic Law which said that elected lawmakers would be disqualified if they fail to swear allegiance to Hong Kong as part of China or alter the wording of their oath of office.

The congress’ decision would effectively ban the directly elected councilors from office and Beijing’s intervention in the territory’s judicial independence shows a disregard of democracy that resulted in protests in Hong Kong on Sunday, DPP caucus chief executive Wu Ping-jui （吳秉叡） said.

“The swearing-in controversy exposed as a lie China’s promise that Hong Kong would have a high degree of autonomy and judicial independence for 50 years under the ‘one country, two systems,’” Wu said.

Freedom of speech is a basic human right and a universal value, the deprivation of which would only drive Hong Kong further away from Beijing, he said.

The incident was preceded by another swearing-in controversy in 2004 when Legislative Councilor Leung Kwok-hung （梁國雄）, who, as well as the standard oath, pledged allegiance to Chinese and Hong Kongers, and vowed to fight for democracy, justice, human rights and freedom, DPP Legislator Liu Shih-fang （劉世芳） said.

Similar incidents have occurred in Taiwan, such as when DPP lawmakers swore allegiance to Taiwanese in 1993 after the nation held its first direct legislative election in 1992 and in 1996 when DPP lawmakers turned their backs on the national flag during their swearing-in ceremonies, but they were still able to retain their seats in the Legislative Yuan, Liu said.

新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES