Lam faces tough task
> New chief executive will only further polarise HK: Critics
HONG KONG: Hong Kong’s new leader Carrie Lam, seen as tough and capable by supporters but hated by the pro-democracy camp, faces a difficult task in calming political tensions in the divided city.
Voted in as chief executive yesterday by a committee heavily weighted towards Beijing, critics say she will only further polarise a society riven by protests two years ago that centred on fears of China’s growing influence.
“She will have no honeymoon,” said Alan Leong, chairman of the democratic-leaning Civic Party.
“(Beijing’s support of Lam) has disappointed a lot of the middle class, a lot of professional people, a lot of intellectuals,” he said.
“She’s a nightmare for us,” student activist Joshua Wong said.
Wong was part of a group of 200 protesters demonstrating as the votes were being counted, chanting: “We want universal suffrage.”
Hong Kong’s electoral system has come under fire as unrepresentative of its 7.3 million residents.
An electoral committee – made up of legislators, heads of professional bodies, representatives of sectors like agriculture, financial services, trade unions and more – chooses the city’s leader.
Although the system was set to change to introduce a public vote, many argue the changes proposed by Beijing and the Hong Kong government do not go far enough.
Beijing’s insistence that candidates be pre-approved before a one-person, one-vote election brought hundreds of thousands of people to the streets in 2014.
“Lam’s victory despite her lack of representation and popular support reflects the Chinese Communist Party’s complete control over Hong Kong’s electoral process and its serious intrusion of Hong Kong’s autonomy,” legislator Nathan Law said in a statement released by his party Demosisto.
Lam, who will be the first woman to run Hong Kong, rose through the ranks as a career civil servant before taking public office.
She served as deputy to Hong Kong’s outgoing leader Leung Chun-ying and is tainted by her association with an unpopular figure who was criticised for doing Beijing’s bidding while in office.
Lam is nicknamed lai-ma or “wet-nurse” by opponents in a jibe over what they say was fawning loyalty towards her former boss.
The 59-year-old cast herself as a force for change on the campaign trail, focusing on issues such as poverty and housing which have also fuelled unrest.
Although she was well behind main rival and ex-finance minister John Tsang in most opinion polls before the vote, she had strong support among older residents.
Tsang, seen as a more moderate establishment figure, garnered backing from young people.
Lam was widely perceived as Beijing’s favoured candidate throughout the race.
Her bid to be seen as a woman of the people hit stumbling blocks as she sought the leadership.
While using the city’s underground rail network as part of campaigning, she appeared unfamiliar with how to use the ubiquitous “Octopus” travel card to get through barriers.
She was also mocked for a lack of common sense after an anecdote related to reporters – about a latenight hunt for toilet paper – revealed she didn’t know where to buy essentials in a city packed with convenience stores. – Agencies