Today should have marked a new era for Hong Kong, one in which long-held hopes of universal suffrage were finally realised. We should be celebrating the passing by lawmakers of an acclaimed package of democratic reforms, supported by pro-establishment figures and democrats alike, which - with Beijing's blessing - would allow the city's permanent residents to freely choose their own leader. Sadly, the reality is different. The government's reform package, voted down in farcical circumstances yesterday, was never going to be democratic enough to win the crucial votes needed from democrat legislators. The community was split on whether or not the proposals - which would have made it difficult,...
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