Hong Kong’s Largest Pro-Democracy Party Moves Toward Dissolution

With Beijing’s tightening control over Hong Kong, the Democratic Party, the single largest pro-democracy group in Hong Kong, is about to disband for good.

The party held an extraordinary general meeting on April 13, authorizing its Central Committee to follow up further on the motion to disband.

Party Chairperson Lo Kin-hei told the media after the meeting that more than 110 members voted, over 90 percent of whom supported the motion “to authorize the Democratic Party Central Committee to follow up further on the process of the Party’s dissolution.”

Lo added that some members had queried the political wisdom of disbandment, and he had responded and explained during the meeting. However, it is not convenient to reveal too many details at the meeting, he said.

He also said that most members expressed understanding and that the Party is setting up a special dissolution panel, which is tasked with searching for a legal adviser and accountant to help with the liquidation process.

As for how to manage the Party’s remaining assets, he said, one way is to donate to like-minded groups or charity organizations. There is no final decision yet on the beneficiary or the time frame to do this, he said.

According to a Reuters report on April 11, five Democratic Party executives said that Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials or go-betweens had urged the party to dissolve; otherwise, they would face dire consequences, including arrests.

Li Wah-ming, a former party official, said that one CCP official stated that the dissolution should be completed before the upcoming Legislative Council elections in December.

Lo Kin-hei declined to comment on this at the press conference.

The Democratic Party had earlier set up a three-person group comprising Chairperson Lo Kin-hei, Vice Chairperson Mok Kin-shing, and Secretary General Leung Wing-kuen, specializing in dealing with the law, administrative, and financial matters required for dissolution procedures.

Lo said it is difficult to provide a clear dissolution schedule now, describing the process as “hard to go fast, but should never go too slow.” He estimated it might take several months to complete it. Mok also added that the liquidation process includes a statutory gazette process, which is not expected to be completed within this year.

When asked to summarize the work of the Democratic party over the past 30 years, Lo said that at this stage it is not the right time to get into personal feelings, “this is the time to continue the work and to deliver what is handed down to me from our rank and file.”

The Democratic Party was established in 1994 and has been, for many years, the largest party in the Legislative Council, as well as being active in the District Council.

After the implementation of the National Security Law (NSL) by the CCP in Hong Kong in 2020, several former party members were jailed under NSL charges.

The CCP’s Standing Committee, through the so-called “improved” Hong Kong electoral system in 2021, has set up high threshold eligibility criteria effectively barring the Democrats and other pro-democracy parties from participating in future elections.

The Civic Party, another pro-democracy political party, composed mainly of professionals, was officially dissolved in 2024.