樑振英爲有關香港選舉言論表示遺憾

CY Leung, Hong Kong’s chief executive, has expressed his regrets over the “misunderstanding” caused when he said that giving too much power to low-income voters would lead to populist government policies.

香港特首樑振英(CY Leung)對他的言論所造成的“誤解”感到遺憾，他曾表示，將過多權力賦予低收入選民將帶來民粹主義政府政策。

Mr Leung said last week in an interview with the Financial Times and other media that basing Hong Kong’s electoral system on “numeric representation” would force politicians to pay much more attention to those earning below the median household income. “You would end up with that kind of politics and policies,” he said.

樑振英上週在接受英國《金融時報》和其他媒體的採訪時表示，如果讓香港的選舉制度基於“數字化代表法”，將迫使政治人士將更多的注意力轉向那些收入低於家庭收入中值的人羣。他表示：“你將得到那樣的政治和政策。”

As examples, Mr Leung said the economically unimportant sports and religious sectors would also be sidelined in such a system.

樑振英舉例說，在這種體制下，經濟上並不重要的體育和宗教界別也將遭到排擠。

Inequality is a sensitive topic in the former British territory, where, according to the charity Feeding Hong Kong, one in five people live in poverty.

在這個前英國殖民地，不平等是一個敏感話題。慈善組織樂餉社(Feeding Hong Kong)稱，在這裏，每5人就有1人生活在貧困之中。

On Tuesday, Mr Leung sought to appease those angered by his remarks, some of whom staged a small protest outside his residence last week. In response to a reporter’s question before an executive council meeting, Mr Leung said he should have been “clearer” in explaining his stance on the current electoral system.

週二，樑振英試圖平息他的上述言論所招致的憤怒情緒，其中一些人上週在他的住所外舉行了小規模抗議活動。在出席一次行政會議之前回答一位記者的提問時，樑振英表示，他本應“更清楚”地解釋自己對當前選舉制度的立場。

“I know my words were unclear, and this caused some concern and misunderstanding among grass-roots [poor] people, the religious sector and the sports sector,” he said. “I regret that.”

“我知道我的措辭不是很清楚，這在基層（窮人）、宗教界別和體育界別引起了一些擔憂和誤解，”他表示，“我對此感到遺憾。”

Pro-democracy protesters have been on the streets for a month now, blocking roads in three busy districts of the city to campaign for changes to the way Hong Kong chooses its chief executive.

支持民主的抗議活動已持續一個月，示威者在香港3個繁忙街區設置路障，呼籲改變選舉產生香港特首的方式。

Hundreds remained camped out in the main highway outside government offices in the city centre, sleeping in tents and living on donations of food and water.

數百人仍在香港特區政府大樓外的主要道路上紮營，晚上睡在帳篷裏，依靠捐贈的食品和水生活。

As the protests have dragged on, Mr Leung’s approval rating has dropped from 45 per cent in August to just under 39 per cent now, according to the latest survey by Hong Kong University.

在抗議活動持續之際，根據香港大學(Kong University)的最新調查，樑振英的支持率已從8月的45%降至現在的不到39%。

Last week the government and student activists held the first round of talks since the protests began on September 26. However, despite two hours of televised debate, progress towards ending the civil disobedience campaign remains elusive.

上週，香港政府和學生活動人士舉行了自9月26日抗議開始以來的首輪對話。然而，儘管進行了兩個小時的電視直播辯論，但在結束這場公民抗命方面依未取得進展。

Benny Tai, one of the leaders of the Occupy Central protest group, on Monday called on the government to hold a non-binding referendum on the issue of electoral reform, saying that such a move would likely bring an end to the street protests.

“佔中”領導人之一戴耀廷(Benny Tai)週一呼籲政府就選舉改革舉行一場沒有約束力的全民公投。他說，此類舉措很可能結束街頭抗議活動。

Under current government proposals, about 5m residents will get to vote for the first time in the next election in 2017. However, critics complain that the list of candidates will remain in the hands of just 1,200 people drawn from the elite.

按照香港政府當前的提議，約500萬居民將在2017年的選舉中首次參與投票。然而，批評人士抱怨稱，候選人名單依然掌握在來自精英階層的區區1200名人士的手中。

The government insists that such a system is prescribed by the Basic Law – Hong Kong’s constitution – leaving them with little option for change.

香港政府堅稱，這一制度是《基本法》（香港的憲制文件）規定的，這讓他們沒有改變的餘地。

However, former Hong Kong governor Chris Patten said in an opinion piece for Project Syndicate on Tuesday that Mr Leung has “considerable room for manoeuvre”, and called on him to ”demonstrate some statesmanship”.

然而，香港末任總督彭定康(Chris Patten)週二在《Project Syndicate》上發表評論文章指出，樑振英有着“相當大的迴旋空間”，呼籲他“展示一些政治家的水平”。