香港的民主化条件:历史视野中的反思

Conditions of Democratization in Hong Kong: Reflection in the Perspective of History

何为香港的民主化条件,是普选纷争中的关键分歧。香港的民主化历史表明,单独的经济及其衍生条件并不足以产生和推进民主。无论是民主化计划从流产到逐步启动的历程,还是民主化步伐从保守到突然加速的转变,更为关键的决定因素是对于中国的政治考量。这意味着,在香港的民主化条件中,政治条件不容忽视。当前,香港要进一步迈向普选,只有在不损害国家主权、安全和发展利益的前提下,才能获得足够空间。有必要从香港的实际情况出发,探寻适合自身的民主化道路。

What has been a critical issue in the universal suffrage dilemma is the conditions of democratization in Hong Kong. The opposition tends to emphasize the economic factor in the light of some Western theories. However, it still requires further academic reflection whether these theoretical doctrines apply to Hong Kong. The history of democratization in Hong Kong shows that the economic and social conditions have never been sufficient to the development of democracy. On the contrary, the start and speed of democratization always served the British political strategy towards China. It means that the political factor, especially China＇s political influence, is non-negligible in the whole democratization of Hong Kong. As a resuk, the political element from China, that is the sovereignty and the Basic Law must be taken into account as well when developing democracy in Hong Kong today.