Leadership of Hong Kong’s Democratic Party backs motion to dissolve

Hong Kong’s Democratic Party, once a powerful opposition force in the city’s political landscape, will ask its members whether the group should dissolve after its leadership backed the idea and set up a task force to handle the legal steps involved.

Chairman Lo Kin-hei said on Thursday the task force, to be led by him, would arrange a general meeting for its 400 members to make the final decision on the future of the 30-year-old party and handle the legal issues involved in liquidation.

He stopped short of offering a timeline and also refused to comment on whether the party’s move was prompted by political pressure.

Ten members of the central committee convened a special meeting on Thursday over its future amid speculations it would become the latest civic group to disband under the city’s rewritten political landscape.

“The meeting on Thursday night was held in a peaceful manner, despite many emotions displayed by committee members,” Lo said.

Lo stressed the party could have operated for a bit longer with its financial resources, but the central committee made a “collective decision” after assessing the political environment and what the party could achieve in the city.