Mass resignation after ousting of four ‘unpatriotic’ legislators leaves council with no opposition members
On Thursday, Hong Kong’s legislature will look remarkably more like its counterpart in mainland China. It will sit without any opposition lawmakers after they announced their resignations in protest at four colleagues disqualified from the body on Wednesday under a new power granted to Hong Kong authorities by Beijing to dismiss “unpatriotic” politicians with immediate effect.
The 70-member legislative council will then consist of only pro-Beijing lawmakers, turning into what several observers have described as a rubber-stamping body like China’s National People’s Congress (NPC), which passes pre-approved measures.
