China News Service, Beijing, September 7. The spokesperson of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council said in a statement on September 7 that the Hong Kong community has recently re-emerged around the expression of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region's political system as "separation of powers" in the Hong Kong General Education Science Textbook. dispute.

We agree with Chief Executive Carrie Lam’s remarks and support the decision of the Education Bureau of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region to delete relevant content from teaching materials.

It should be unequivocally pointed out that the statement about the "separation of powers" in the political system of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region is wrong and must be corrected.

　　The spokesman said that this dispute involves a major issue of how to correctly understand the political system of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

To correctly understand the political system of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, we must first accurately understand the constitutional status of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

According to the Constitution and the Basic Law, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region is a local administrative region directly under the Central People's Government. As far as its political system is concerned, it is a local political system.

The high degree of autonomy enjoyed by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, including executive power, legislative power, and judicial power, is granted by the central government.

Certain powers that embody national sovereignty are still retained by the central government. Even if the powers granted to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region are exercised, they are subject to the constraints and supervision of the central powers.

For example, laws formulated by the Legislative Council must be reported to the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress for filing and review, and the power of interpretation of the Basic Law when the courts of the Special Administrative Region hear cases is also subject to the interpretation of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.

"Separation of powers" as a political system model has a specific meaning.

The constitutional status of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region determines that its political system should not be simply compared with a sovereign country, nor can it implement the "separation of powers" based on the complete power of a sovereign country.

The "separation of powers" has never existed in Hong Kong.

　　The spokesman said that according to the Basic Law, the Chief Executive is in a leading and central position in the establishment and operation of the political structure.

The Chief Executive is the head of the entire Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and is accountable to the Central Government on behalf of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

The Chief Executive enjoys extensive powers beyond the heads of administrative agencies, such as being responsible for enforcing the Basic Law and other laws, implementing the Central People’s Government’s instructions on related matters stipulated by the Basic Law, signing bills passed by the Legislative Council, promulgating laws, appointing and dismissing judges at all levels of courts and public offices Personnel etc.

The executive-led system with the chief executive at the core is a major feature of the political system of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region designed by the Hong Kong Basic Law.

　　The spokesman said that under an executive-led system with the chief executive at the core, the administrative organs and legislatures of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region both restrict and cooperate with each other, and the emphasis is on cooperation. The judicial organs exercise judicial power independently.

In the administrative-legislative relationship, the administration is in an active and dominant position.

For example, the government of the special administrative region has most of the power to initiate legislation; draft laws involving public expenditure, political system and government operations can only be proposed by the government of the special administrative region.

The Basic Law also explicitly grants the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region independent judicial power and final adjudication power.

But the judiciary must also abide by the Constitution and the Basic Law, implement the laws formulated by the legislature, and maintain the constitutional order of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

Judicial independence does not mean judicial dominance or judicial supremacy.

　　The spokesperson emphasized that not engaging in the "separation of powers" is an important guiding ideology in the drafting of the political system of the Hong Kong Basic Law.

When Comrade Deng Xiaoping met with members of the Basic Law Drafting Committee of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region in April 1987, he stated clearly: "Hong Kong's system cannot be completely Westernized, nor can it be copied from the West. Hong Kong now does not implement the British system or the American system. It’s been a century and a half. Now it’s unsuitable if we copy it completely, such as the separation of powers, the British and American parliamentary system, and use it to judge whether it is democratic." "We must be realistic and based on our own characteristics. Decide your own system and management methods.” It can be seen that Hong Kong’s political system does not implement the "separation of powers" issue, in fact, it has long been concluded.

　　The spokesperson pointed out that the political system of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region is characterized by administrative leadership with the Chief Executive at the core. The basic elements include separation of powers, administrative leadership, judicial independence, and the Chief Executive's responsibility to the Central Committee on behalf of the Special Administrative Region.

The implementation of executive leadership does not deny the separation of powers between the executive, legislative, and judicial authorities of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and the performance of its duties by the three agencies, nor does it deny the existence of checks and balances between the executive and the legislature, nor does it deny the independence of the judiciary.

Some people in Hong Kong society deliberately confuse the audience and are keen to advocate the "separation of powers" argument. Their real intention is to expand legislative power and judicial power, weaken the governing authority of the Chief Executive and the Special Administrative Region government, and resist the central government’s comprehensive management of Hong Kong. Power, thereby challenging the constitutional order of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and turning Hong Kong into an independent political entity separated from central governance.

This is the point.

Now we must rectify the source, put the chaos out, and correct the reversed right and wrong.

(Finish)