Legislators should get back to basics

IN the past few weeks officials' and legislators' attention was focused on the Act Now--All Wrong contention over constitutional reform. However,what concerns citizens most? Opinion polls show they concern themselves more with Hong Kong's economy and its people's welfare. Hong Kong's constitutional. development is of course important, but it attracts much less attention than its economy and its people's welfare. Now the controversy over constitutional reform has come to a close, both officials and legislators should get back to basics. They must give more thought to matters concerning Hong Kong's economy and its people's welfare, which citizens are more concerned with.

At present, Hong Kong's democratisation is important to its development, as is its people's welfare.Unlike the fish and the bear's palm in MMeenncciiuuss, the two, are not mutually exclusive. Attention must be given toboth, for, unless Hong Kong people live well, its democratisation cannot be sustained.

Few citizens think of democracy abstractly ormetaphysically or set great store by any general principles of democracy. Many regard democracy as an instrument, a means, or a better way to achieve theend of improving people's lives or making things easier for them. In their view, the ultimate goal is to make good use of democracy to bring about social fairnessand justice.

The deep--rooted contradictions Hong Kong mustresolve include not only political ones but also those of two major areas - its economy and its people's welfare.The deep--rooted contradictions of Hong Kong's economic development have troubled its people for years. Hong Kong's economy is heavily dependent on its financial sector and real estate sector. Its industrial structure is far from diversified. As yet we do not havea clue how Hong Kong can have new areas of growth.Deep Deep--rooted social contradictions are equally worrying. The rich rich--poor gap is widening. Social mobility is so slow that transgene rational poverty hasincreased. Such social woes have fuelled socialconflicts. Public resentment is therefore accumulating.The SAR government must find ways to allay it lest unrest should erupt.

Issues of the economy and the people's welfareare likely to get on people's nerves. That is not peculiar to Hong Kong. The latest case is Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's stepping down for his misguided economic and social policies.

Kevin Rudd was immensely popular when he took office as Prime Minister. However, his fellow Labourites have driven him out. They have done somainly because he proposed to impose a heavy tax on resource companies' "super profits" to pay for Australia's infrastructure and support its pension fundsystem. He hoped the policy would win him popular support. As many pension funds and individuals hadinvested heavily in mining companies, that policy drewfire from all quarters. Kevin Rudd's popularity plunged.Politics is more often than not about the economy andthe people's welfare.

Political parties controlling legislative seats shouldno longer be at daggers drawn as they were when they squabbled with each other about constitutionalreform. Legislators should set aside their factious prejudices and resume doing what politicians ought todo basically. They should hasten to deal with matters concerning Hong Kong's economy and its people'swelfare. Internal dissipation resulting from their endless dispute over a single political issue would harm ratherthan profit Hong Kong citizens.

明報英語網「雙語社評」english.mingpao.com/critic.htm

政改黨爭暫告一段落須重新聚焦民生議題

明報社評

2010.06.28

過去一個月， 「起錨」與「超錯」的政改議題是官員和議員的關注焦點，然而，市民最關心的，又是什麼？民調顯示， 經濟發展與民生問題都較受市民關注，政制發展當然重要，但受關注程度卻遠遠不如經濟與民生；所以，在政改方案爭議暫告一段落之後，官員與議員都應該回歸基本，多用心思在市民更關心的經濟民生問題。

民主與民生是現階段香港社會發展的兩個重要組成部分，二者不是魚與熊掌不可兼得的關係，必須兼顧，因為民生搞不好，民主難以持續發展。

大部分市民並非從形而上的角度、抽象地思考民主，也不會說什麼民主的大道理；在不少市民心中，民主是工具，是手段，是改善民生、紓解民困的較佳途徑；善用民主達至一個公平公義的社會，才是目的。

香港社會需要解決的深層次矛盾，除了政治之外，還有兩大範疇──經濟發展、社會民生。

經濟發展的深層次矛盾，困擾港人經年。香港經濟十分依賴金融及地產，產業單一，如何為香港開拓新經濟增長點，迄今未見頭緒。

社會的深層次矛盾同樣叫人憂慮，貧富懸殊問題惡化，社會階級流動緩慢，形成跨代貧窮等。這些社會問題引發極大社會矛盾，社會怨氣不斷累積，政府必須在民怨爆煲之前設法紓解。

經濟民生議題最能挑動民眾神經，並非香港獨有的現象，最新例子就是澳洲總理陸克文因為處理國內經濟民生政策失誤，被迫下台。

陸克文上任時民望極高，但最近卻被黨友逼走，一個重要因素是，他宣布向國內資源企業開徵「資源暴利稅」，支援國家基建、退休金等，欲藉此爭取選民支持，但由於許多投資者和養老基金都把錢投資礦業公司，結果政策引起社會大反彈，陸克文民望急挫。經濟民生，往往就是最大的政治。

立法會各黨派也應該盡快收起政爭時的劍拔弩張，放下黨派成見，回歸為政者的基本責任，盡快處理各項社會經濟民生議題。無止境的單一政治議題爭拗所造成的社會內耗，對市民有害無益。

Glossary

welfare

well-being, happiness, health and prosperity(of a person or a community).

misguided /mIs'gaIdId/mistaken.

at daggers drawnin bitter enmity.