Politics – Electoral Law debate | New Macau says election transparency more essential than freedom of expression

New Macau representatives at the meeting yesterday, including Jason Chao (center right) and Scott Chiang (far right)

At a New Macau Association (ANM) meeting yesterday, vice president Jason Chao said that need for transparency in the Legislative Assembly (AL) elections next year is more essential than freedom of expression, given the particular circumstances of Macau. Chao made the comment during an ANM meeting ahead of the AL’s discussion on the topic today, when the body is expected to vote on ammendments to the Electoral Law.
In reaction to what the association sees as the flouting of the Electoral Law by organizations with access to significant resources, ANM want to expand the list of entities prohibited from aligning with, and favoring, particular candidates.
Currently, companies with capital sourced or partly sourced from public funds, media organizations, and gaming operators are prevented from publicizing explicit or official support for individual candidates. However, the ANM proposal would see this extended to private companies, regardless of their size and irrespective of whether they are recipients of government grants, save for a few exceptions.
“[Under the current system] marginalized activists such as New Macau do not have any advantage [in the election],” said Chao. “We hope that the Electoral Law will create fairness and equality of participation, but this [current version of the] legislation is not taking a step in that direction.”
“New Macau Association is proposing the inclusion of business organizations and associations receiving public grants in the list of having no eligibility […] as an election campaign supporter,” he added.
However, ANM’s proposal to expand the list of organizations prohibited from officially supporting individual candidates is being seen by some as a challenge to freedom of expression. Even the association’s senior leadership acknowledged that it was problematic, since the group has indignantly, and on numerous occasions, called for better protection of the particular freedom.
“While some will challenge that it [ANM’s proposal] is a restriction on freedom of speech – and to some extent, that’s [true] –you have to take the circumstances of Macau into account,” justified Chao. “Macau needs transparency. It’s a matter of whether or not this piece of legislation is going to create fair ground for every ticket to contest those seats.”
When questioned by journalists as to whether striving for fewer restrictions might be more in line with ANM’s vision for Macau politics, the association’s senior leadership said that they would prefer to work within the “current framework” of the Electoral Law, adding that they had little confidence in oversight bodies to prevent “cheaters” in a less controlled electoral climate.
“One might move in the direction of lifting all restrictions [on campaigning] like in Hong Kong,” Chao speculated, “but under the current framework of Macau’s election law, [the legislation is moving] in the restrictive direction. At this stage, we are sticking with the restrictive framework and so we are calling for more restrictions [in the name of] transparency.”
The problem also stems from a lack of confidence in electoral affairs monitoring agencies, according to a statement published by ANM yesterday.
“In the real world scenario, it is practically impossible to draw a clear line between the resources devoted to an election campaign and that [which is] under the ‘normal operations’ of these organizations,” the statement noted.
“Without a strong auditing practice and the required power of the [oversight] committee, not only will the system not improve but it also opens another loophole, enabling cheats [of the system],” added ANM president Scott Chiang yesterday.
“Is the committee powerful enough to detect every activity held by this organization’s supporters? I don’t think so,” he hypothesized. “Do they have the willingness to count every expenditure and put that under the bill of the list?”
“In practice, will this amendment improve the fairness of political participation in Macau, or will it enable cheaters to [cheat] legally?” he challenged.
Under the new ANM proposals, only a small number of associations would be able to sign up as official supporters of specific candidates, in addition to individuals who would be permitted to freely affiliate themselves with electoral candidates.
Chao sheepishly acknowledged during yesterday’s meeting that ANM would be one such group, though the reason for the awkwardness was unclear since political associations like ANM are already seen as essential to the functioning of Macau’s electoral system.
The association has additionally requested a meeting with members of the AL committee who will today deliberate changes to the bill to share some of the concerns raised during yesterday’s meeting.

Opposition stated to mop25,000 deposit

New Macau also commented during yesterday’s meeting on the introduction of a security deposit of MOP25,000 which some hope will be required from potential candidates before they can put their name forward. “This restriction may make sense in places with vibrant civil societies such as Hong Kong, where many people actively engage in an election, but in Macau this price of electoral participation […] is a big amount for those who do not have many resources,” noted Jason Chao. “We oppose the introduction of the deposit.”