Legislators who rejected the government's constitutional reform package on December 21 owe the public an explanation, a government spokesman said yesterday.

"It would be for the Legislative Council members who voted against the package to explain why they believed their action was in the interests of Hong Kong," the spokesman said.

He stressed the government, which worked hard to push forward progress in constitutional reform, had not hindered democratic development in Hong Kong.

The spokesman was commenting on the remarks made by lawmaker Fernando Cheung on constitutional development in his "Letter to Hong Kong" broadcast yesterday on Radio-TV Hong Kong (RTHK).

The spokesman said that he was surprised that Cheung, who had voted against the government's package of proposals on the 2007/08 elections, was suggesting that the government had not been promoting democratic development.

"The government package, if approved by the Legislative Council (LegCo), would have broadened substantially the public's participation in the Chief Executive election and the Legislative Council election," he said.

The package enjoyed the support of most people in the community and more than half of LegCo members, but, "regrettably," 24 legislators decided to vote against it, the spokesman said.

The spokesman noted that as the package did not receive the required two-thirds majority support in LegCo, existing electoral arrangements would continue to apply to the 2007/08 elections.

"This constitutional fact was well known to the public and the Legislative Council before the vote on the government package," the spokesman said.

The spokesman emphasized that it was misleading for anyone to suggest that there could be a second package for 2007/08 elections which would receive the support of different sectors of the community as well as the support of two-thirds of all legislators.

"The government is fully aware of the public's aspirations for universal suffrage," the spokesman said. "The Commission on Strategic Development will continue to take forward the work relating to a road map for universal suffrage."

The government presented to the LegCo on December 21 two motions that proposed to double the membership of the Election Committee (EC) that elects the chief executive in 2007 from 800 to 1,600. It also proposed to add 10 seats in 2008 to the Legislative Council, five of which would be elected from geographic constituencies and five from the district council functional constituency (FC).

According to the plan, all 529 district councilors, 400 of which are directly elected, would be included in the EC, and they would elect among themselves to fill the five new FC seats.

The moves will expand the electoral base to 3 million people.

Both motions were rejected as 24 opposition camp legislators, who insisted on including a timetable for universal suffrage in the package, voted against them. One opposition legislator abstained from voting.

(China Daily HK edition January 9, 2006)