A Hypothetical Case for a Liberal Hong Kong and a Liberal China
Since the Self-Strengthening Movement and constitutional reforms in the late Qing Dynasty, and all the way to the First Republic (the Republic of China) and the Second Republic (the People's Republic of China), the main obstacle to China's modern political system has been the failure to effectively China's latest version of the constitution, drafted in the 1980s, contains outdated provisions and clauses that restrict freedoms and weaken the separation of powers, aiming to provide modern China with a new constitution suitable for a free China. The drafting process of the new constitution and it1) A constitutional convention was convened, composed of representatives from all provinces and municipalities of China. Specifically, each province and municipality was determined based on its population ratio, with a total of 243 representatives reviewing and rewriting the constitution article by 2) The new constitution should establish the principles of freedom, separation of powers and a democratic system with Chinese characteristics.3) The executive branch (State Council) should be non-partisan, with all personnel, including the prime minister and deputy prime minister, not affiliated with any political party.4) The Prime Minister is elected by agreement among the four Deputy Prime Ministers, who in turn appoint his successor as Deputy Prime Minister.5) The National People's Congress is composed of 243 representatives elected by each province and municipality, who are selected from among county and village representatives, who are in turn elected by local people. The allocation of the National People's Congress will be determined by the populati6) The 243 deputies in the National People's Congress will elect a chairman to preside over the agenda of the National People's Congress and the order of reviewing bills.7) The current CPPCC will be incorporated into the legislative system and elected by proportional representation from all walks of life.8) A representative can be a member of both the National People's Congress and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, and can also belong to both the National People's Congress and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference respectively.9) Each CPPCC representative elects a CPPCC chairman who is responsible for deciding the order in which bills are submitted to the NPC.10) The legislative process begins with the CPPCC formulating policies, which are then put to a vote by the National People's Congress. Two agencies11) The judiciary is headed by the president, whose main responsibility is to ensure the correct functioning of the constitution, a new one drafted by the National People's Congress.12) The president and five other chief justices make up the Constitutional Court, which is responsible for conducting judicial review of policies implemented by the State Council or laws passed by the National People's Congress. When there is a 3-3 tie in a judicial review case, the president has th13) The president can take the initiative to sue the legislature or the State Council for unconstitutionality, and have the case heard by the Constitutional Court.14) The President is the head of the three branches of government (the President of the Judiciary, the Prime Minister of the Executive and the Chairman of the Legislature) and is also the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces.15) The military is loyal to the constitution and is led by the president of the judicial branch.16) The executive and judicial systems, including the president, strictly maintain political neutrality. The president is elected through consultation among the six chief justices and will select his successor as chief justice.17) Since the legislature is formed through democratic voting, in principle, laws enacted by the elected legislature can be implemented as long as they do not violate the constitution (Legislative supremacy). At the same time, the procedure for amending the Constitution must first be proposed by the18) The new China will initially consist of five autonomous regions, two special administrative regions, four municipalities directly under the Central Government, and 23 provinces. Among them, five autonomous regions each voted to maintain the status quo or become special administrative regions. 1919) Taiwan should also hold a vote to choose to maintain the status quo or to join China and become a special administrative region.20) Each special administrative region is also required to formulate its own basic law to clarify the relationship between the region and the central government.21) One or two official languages for each SAR will be chosen by each SAR individually.22) In addition to military and diplomatic powers, the SAR has its own system including legislative, executive, and judicial powers. The electoral system of each special administrative region is purely an internal affair of each special administrative region.23) Each SAR has its own Basic Law, which is negotiated between the central government and the elected representatives of each SAR.The new constitution establishes the principle of separation of powers and tilts more power towards the judiciary, as China's past failures were largely a failure in the practice of the rule of law. By placing the president and commander-in-chief of the armed forces in the judiciary, it is hoped thaIn Hong Kong, the key changes to the Basic Law are as follows:1) The Basic Law is written in English and Traditional Chinese, the two official languages of Hong Kong. In the event of any discrepancy between the English and Chinese versions, the English version shall prevail.2) To ensure that the NPC’s interpretation of laws is limited to diplomatic and military matters, and that only judges of the Court of Final Appeal can petition the NPC for interpretation of laws. Neither the NPC nor the executive and legislative bodies of Hong Kong can petition the NPC for interpre3) Like constitutions around the world, the Basic Law is only used to limit and interpret government power. There is no possibility that citizens or any legal person may violate the Basic Law.