Central gov't liaison office supports HKSAR gov't decision to postpone chief executive election

HONG KONG, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- The Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) said on Friday that it understood and supported the decision to postpone the election for chief executive of the HKSAR in view of the epidemic situation in Hong Kong.

HKSAR Chief Executive Carrie Lam announced earlier in the day that the election, originally scheduled for March 27, would be postponed to May 8 due to the COVID-19 epidemic.

The liaison office said in a statement that the decision met the actual needs of Hong Kong in the epidemic prevention, and conformed to the expectation of the public to concentrate on fighting the epidemic, and was also conducive to ensuring that the election would be conducted in a fair, impartial, open and safe manner, which is in line with the overall interests of Hong Kong.

The HKSAR government has made the decision to postpone the election in accordance with the Emergency Regulations Ordinance, which is in line with international practice and has a solid legal basis. The liaison office believes that it will be fully understood and supported by the Hong Kong community, according to the statement.

The statement said it was hoped that with the strong support from the central authorities, all walks of life in Hong Kong join hands in strengthening anti-epidemic actions, thus striving to win the battle.