HK LegCo File photo:VCG

The Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council and the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong SAR have criticized the move by opposition lawmakers of the Hong Kong Legislative Council (LegCo) to "resign en masse" as a "farce" that exposes their stubborn stance against the central government. 

The mass resignation was announced after the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee formulated a set of arrangements, including the standards for disqualifying unpatriotic Hong Kong LegCo lawmakers. Four opposition LegCo members were disqualified after the top legislature announced the constitutional structure over Hong Kong lawmakers' qualifications on Wednesday. 

This farce of resignations fully exposed the nature of some opposition lawmakers in disregarding the public's interests for political self-interest, and once again demonstrated their stubborn stance against the central government, spokesperson of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council said.

Their act challenged the Basic Law and the relevant interpretations and decisions of the Standing Committee of the NPC, and opposed the full governance of the central government over Hong Kong, the spokesperson said.

The normal performance of the constitutional power of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, which has the public's support, was regarded by those opposition members as "political suppression." They even used their post as a tool of political manipulation. 

A spokesperson of the Liaison Office said that the demand for political allegiance is not unique to Hong Kong SAR, but is a basic value that is recognized internationally. 

There is a concept of "loyal opposition" in Western politics that requires dissenting political participants to be loyal to the current constitutional system and to offer constructive criticism, but betrayal of the country is never allowed. This is a rule of the game that everyone can accept, the spokesperson of the Liaison Office said. 

However, the small number of Hong Kong legislators violated their oath, were disloyal to and wantonly undermined the constitutional order of the HKSAR, sought to paralyze the government's governance, and colluded with external forces to interfere in Hong Kong affairs, the Liaison Office statement said.

"They fantasize about playing the tragedy card through their dramatic resignation but they only created tragedy for themselves," said the Liaison Office.

The mass resignation is not only an irresponsible decision for themselves but also a betrayal against the people who voted for them. They bind themselves to those who do not meet the requirements of being LegCo members, which also means that they have declared themselves unqualified to serve the citizens of Hong Kong, it said.

Evidence showed that those people did not take the duties of a LegCo member and the political responsibility of serving the public seriously, and that they only considered their own political interests. 

Since the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress decided that the Sixth Legislative Council of Hong Kong would continue to perform its duties in accordance with the law for no less than a year due to the COVID-19 outbreak, Hong Kong opposition lawmakers have been entangled and erratic about the issue of staying or leaving. They initially said they would make a "political decision" by holding public opinion polls in August and September, but now those 15 lawmakers have declared a mass resignation without hesitation. 

The Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council said these opposition members want to use this mass resignation to encourage radical resistance and plead for intervention from outside forces, and warned that it would be wrong to drag Hong Kong into chaos again.

The Liaison Office said their delusion of using international influence and winning sympathy is doomed to be futile. "Unreasonable interference from outside forces was never a thing that we are afraid of. We believe as long as we do a good job on our own things, things in Hong Kong will surely get better." 

The determination of the central government and the government of the HKSAR to maintain overall stability in Hong Kong is unwavering, and the determination to bring order out of chaos is unwavering, the two organs said in their statements. 

Both the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council and the Liaison Office in the Hong Kong SAR said that the mass resignation of some radical opposition lawmakers will neither affect the normal operation of the LegCo, nor affect Hong Kong from moving forward in line with "one country, two systems." 

The Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council praised some opposition members who were not roped into the mass resignation and chose to continue performing their duties. "Such a wise move deserves recognition," it said.

The Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office said it hopes the remaining members of the legislature will continue performing their duties, take more active actions in curbing the epidemic, bring about economic recovery, alleviate people's hardship and play a positive role in maintaining Hong Kong's long-term prosperity and stability.