The Government has published the consultation report and proposals on the method for selecting the Chief Executive by universal suffrage after two rounds of consultation over 18 months.
The first round public consultation was launched on December 4, 2013.
At that time, Chief Secretary Carrie Lam said it was the common aspiration of the Central Authorities, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government and the people of Hong Kong to achieve universal suffrage for the Chief Executive election in 2017.
"I appeal to all quarters of the community, particularly political leaders and Legislative Council members, to take into full account that if we do not seize the opportunity, constitutional development in Hong Kong will have to suffer from an impasse again, and to seriously consider what possible implications this may bring about to the political, social and economic stability of Hong Kong," she said.
"I sincerely appeal to all members of the community to engage in rational, peaceful and pragmatic discussions, with an open, accommodating and inclusive mind."
Task force listens
In the five months following the launch, the constitutional reform task force - consisting of the Chief Secretary, Secretary for Justice Rimsky Yuen, and Secretary for Mainland & Constitutional Affairs Raymond Tam - attended 226 consultation activities, to hear and discuss the views of a wide cross-section of society.
It received more than 120,000 submissions which were summarised and presented in a report to the National People's Congress Standing Committee on July 15, 2014.
"Today is a historic moment in the constitutional development of Hong Kong," Chief Executive CY Leung said, after presenting the report.
"We will be able to take a big stride forward in the democratic development of Hong Kong if we are willing to forge consensus as much as we can and leave behind our differences in a rational and pragmatic manner on the remaining work. In about two years, over 5 million eligible voters in Hong Kong could directly elect the Chief Executive through one person, one vote for the first time in our history."
Legal framework set
Six weeks later, on August 31, 2014, the NPCSC handed down its decision and explanations, effectively laying out the legal framework for constitutional reform.
"The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress has finished scrutinising in Beijing the report I submitted. And after considering comprehensively the views from the Hong Kong community, the NPCSC adopted the decision on issues relating to the selection of the Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region by universal suffrage," Mr Leung said.
Mr Leung also said he hoped citizens would cherish it as it offered every eligible voter the right to elect the Chief Executive for the first time in Hong Kong history.
He added that the Government had much work to do to follow up the offer, including a second consultation on universal suffrage. It would also strive to win all legislators' support for the framework.
Mr Leung stressed that the NPCSC's framework was not the final decision since many issues such as candidate numbers had yet to be confirmed. He called on the public to express their views in a lawful manner.
Community's views clear
On January 7, the second round public consultation was launched.
"Despite the legal framework that has been laid down by the National People's Congress Standing Committee, we truly believe that we still have the opportunity to devise a set of electoral arrangements which is fair, open, transparent and highly competitive. So, in other words, there should be equal opportunities for eligible persons to seek nomination from the nominating committee," Mrs Lam said.
In the following two months, the constitutional reform task force attended 88 consultation activities, and received more than 130,000 submissions by the deadline.
On April 22, the Chief Secretary submitted the Government’s consultation report and proposals on the method for selecting the Chief Executive by universal suffrage to the Legislative Council.
In her address to lawmakers, Mrs Lam said: "At this historical and critical moment, the general public and I both expect Members to shoulder their responsibilities and to have regard to the overall situation, so as to allow Hong Kong's democratic development to continue to move forward to establish this most important milestone."
"We should weigh very carefully whether the passage of these proposals, or a standstill in constitutional development, will be a more favourable outcome for the overall and long-term interests of Hong Kong.”
Procedures for nomination
The proposals suggest that a person recommended by 120 of the 1,200 nominating committee members can seek nomination for the Chief Executive election. This lower threshold would allow more interested people to participate in the election and provide the committee with more choices.
Through a secret ballot, each member should support at least two people seeking nomination. The two to three people seeking nomination who are able to obtain the endorsement of more than half the nominating committee members and those with the highest number of member endorsements, will become candidates.
In respect of the voting arrangements, all eligible electors will choose the CE-elect from the two to three candidates nominated by the nominating committee using the "first-past-the-post" system, meaning only a single round of voting will be held.
Giving the 1,200 members of the nominating committee the ability and right to vote will make the election process more competitive, which implies that people from different political backgrounds should stand a higher chance of being selected or nominated to become a Chief Executive candidate.
"The Government sincerely puts forth specific proposals to respond to the strong aspirations of the public to implement universal suffrage. I truly believe this is the biggest and most important step for Hong Kong's long-term constitutional development. It is also the most courageous step forward after overcoming many difficulties taking every step before," Mrs Lam concluded.
