Letters | District council revamp: indirect elections are not part of the offer to Hongkongers

Readers discuss the mistaken description of the government’s district council revamp, the development potential for Hong Kong’s bond market, and how to plug the cybersecurity gap

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Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu (centre) lead a team from the administration to unveil the details of the district council revamp at a press conference on May 2. Photo: AFP

Published: 11:30am, 12 May 2023

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There is clear-cut difference between a position filled by government appointment and one by direct election. Everyone can comprehend it: a deer is not a horse.

But when it comes to indirect election, confusion arises.

In the case where the electorate are the adult members of the general public and each of their votes is equal, we call this “direct election”. In the district council elections of 2019, 452 out of a total of 479 seats were contested through direct election.

In the case where the electorate comprises the winners of a direct election, we call this “indirect election”. For example, in 2019, the chairperson of each district council was elected by the members of that district council.

And in the 2016 Legislative Council elections, the winner for the District Council (First) functional constituency was elected by the directly elected district council members. These are two good examples of indirect election.