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The following is issued on behalf of the Electoral Affairs Commission:
Two regulations made by the Electoral Affairs Commission governing the procedures for conducting the Election Committee subsector by-elections to be held in early January were gazetted today (October 12).
The Electoral Affairs Commission (Electoral Procedure) (Election Committee) Regulation sets out the procedures for nominations, functions to be performed by various electoral officers, rules related to a polling station and a counting station, the voting procedure and arrangements for counting votes.
The regulation applies to Election Committee subsector ordinary elections and by-elections as well as nomination and supplementary nomination for the religious subsector, a spokesman for the Electoral Affairs Commission said.
Under the newly enacted Chief Executive Election Ordinance, before the second Chief Executive is to be elected by the Election Committee, subsector by-elections must be held to fill vacancies on the Election Committee arising from the resignation, death or disqualification of its members.
The Election Committee, which was constituted on July 14, 2000, will be responsible for electing the Chief Executive in addition to returning a Legislative Council member in a by-election should a vacancy arise among the six Legislative Councillors elected by the Election Committee during the second term of the Legislative Council.
"As of today we have ascertained four vacancies on the Election Committee arising from the resignation or death of members in respect of the Heung Yee Kuk, Finance, Legal as well as Architectural, Surveying and Planning subsectors. Therefore, by-elections will be held in early January to fill these vacancies," the spokesman said.
"The exact number of vacancies will be ascertained after the provisional register of members of the Election Committee is published on November 16," he said.
Explaining new features of the regulation, the spokesman said: "The Electoral Affairs Commission is given flexibility to decide on the method of marking ballot papers to cater for different situations. In the coming by-elections in January where only one to two members are to be elected for each subsector, a chop bearing the mark of a 'tick' may be used."
In previous Election Committee subsector elections, a voter must mark his ballot paper by shading the oval against each name of the candidates of his choice.
"The regulation also allows different modes of counting of votes - by computer or manual counting - as is appropriate for an election," the spokesman said.
"Computers may be used for an ordinary election, where voters have to choose a large number of candidates ranging from 11 to 41 for each subsector. Manual counting may be adopted for a by-election where only one to two candidates are to be chosen for a subsector," he said.
The Election Committee is to consist of 800 members, who are entitled to vote where they are Hong Kong permanent residents. The members come from 38 subsectors representing various trades, professions, labour and social welfare groups as well as district organisations.
The second regulation gazetted today, the Electoral Affairs Commission (Nominations Advisory Committee (Election Committee)) Regulation, provides for the appointment of Nominations Advisory Committees to provide free legal advice to prospective candidates, prospective nominees and designated bodies of the religious subsector and Returning Officers on the validity of nominations.
"The legal service will be provided to Returning Officers for the forthcoming subsector by-elections to be held in January. Prospective candidates and nominees may also obtain the service in future subsector ordinary elections," the spokesman said.
"Candidates intending to run in subsector ordinary elections may find this service particularly useful as they can ascertain their eligibility for candidature well before they make efforts to plan and conduct their campaign," he said.
Each Nominations Advisory Committee is in the charge of either a Senior Counsel or a legal practitioner of not less than 10-year standing.
Upon making this new regulation, the Commission made an amendment regulation - the Electoral Affairs Commission (Nominations Advisory Committee (Legislative Council)) (Amendment) Regulation 2001 - so that the principal regulation will no longer deal with matters related to Election Committee subsectors, but could focus on Legislative Council elections only.
The three regulations will be tabled in the Legislative Council on October 17. Nominations for the Election Committee subsector by-elections will be open in mid-December.
End/Friday, October 12, 2001
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