We see that our chief executive has been speaking about constitutional reform again. He is reported to have said that all universal suffrage systems in the world can be regarded as "genuine" if they are designed in accordance with the law. Clearly constitutional law is not his strong point.
The discussion of Hong Kong's electoral arrangements have become increasingly Orwellian as the government and pro-Beijing supporters persist in claiming that the proposals for the 2017 chief executive are a "step forward". We are told that if everyone over 18 has a vote this is universal suffrage and is surely a good thing. It might be if you had a choice over who to vote for.
Some people think that the arrangements suggested by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress in its August 31 decision last year does give us a choice. If there are two or three candidates then there's a choice, so the thinking goes. But the August 31 decision has made it much harder for candidates to get nominated.
Previously candidates needed to secure support from 18 per cent of the nomination committee to get on the ballot. Under the new proposals for 2017, candidates will need to get the support of 50 per cent.