Hong Kong changes law to slash directly elected council seats, undermining democratic challenges

By KANIS LEUNG
Associated Press

HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong lawmakers on Thursday passed an amendment to a law to eliminate most directly elected seats on local district councils, the last major political representative bodies chosen by the public. The move shuts down further democratic challenges in the city. The changes will see the proportion of directly elected seats in the municipal-level organization being slashed from some 90% currently to just about 20% — even lower than the level when these bodies were first set up in the 1980s, when Hong Kong was ruled by Britain. The electoral overhaul reflects Beijing’s increasing control over Hong Kong following months of mass pro-democracy protests in 2019.