Chief Executive Carrie Lam has donated HK$30,000 to the Democratic Party as she attended the party’s 23rd anniversary dinner on Tuesday.
Lam showed up at the event after flying back from Beijing where she attended the closing session of the National People’s Congress in the morning.
When former lawmaker Fred Li sang the classic Canto-pop song Instinct on stage, Lam donated HK$30,000. It was the first time a chief executive has donated at the party’s anniversary.
After the event, Lam made a post on Instagram with the hashtags “Democratic Party” and “Great reconciliation.”
Lam was seated at the main table next to Democratic Party Chair Wu Chi-wai, former chief secretary Anson Chan, business magnate Allan Zeman, former lawmakers Emily Lau and Allan Lee, among others.
Several top officials including Chief Secretary Matthew Cheung, Financial Secretary Paul Chan and Secretary for Justice Teresa Cheng also attended the cocktail session.
Wu said former chief executive Leung Chun-ying did not attend anniversary events for pro-democracy parties, ignoring the relationship with certain parts of society. He said Lam’s appearance was just a matter of returning the relationship between the government and political groups to a normal state.
In his remarks at the event, Wu said China’s Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Bay Area and the Belt and Road Initiative are opportunities for Hong Kong, and the city has to maintain its core values and talents.
The party raised HK$5 million on Tuesday, falling short of last year’s HK$7.6 million.
