Page:Hong Kong Basic Law consultation report vol. 1.djvu/43

 put to a vote. But the sole function of a public opinion poll is to quantify opinions, which is against the Constitution of the CCBL.

5.2.2.2 In the last consultation report, the supporting and opposing views of the public on various issues were not quantified. Only the number of opinions collected from different sources was listed out. These figures are not necessarily related to the inclinations of members of the public regarding a certain opinion. In fact, in the last round of consultations, it was impossible for us to accurately compute the number of view in favour of or against a certain opinion.

5.3 On the scientific nature of a public opinion poll

5.3.1 Affirmative views:

5.3.1.1 Undeniably, all means of collecting opinions (including public opinion polls) have their limitations and are subject to a certain rate of error. So long as the whole process is conducted rigorously at an acceptable rate of error, the survey results are generally accepted.

5.3.1.2 When no better alternatives are available, a public opinion poll is the most scientific, fair and effective method for collecting opinions from the general public. To query the scientific nature of public opinion polls by arguing that the survey results obtained from a sample of several hundred to three thousand people cannot represent the opinions of people in Hong Kong at large, is undoubtedly being sceptical about modern science.

5.3.1.3 Although a public opinion poll has its limitations, the CCBL can at least find out through the survey the inclinations of people in Hong Kong at a certain period of time. If one worries that a single survey may fail to indicate clearly the opinions of people in Hong Kong, a second survey may be conducted.

5.3.1.4 If one flatly refuses to conduct a public opinion poll on the grounds that it is not reliable, it will be difficult for him to account for this decision in the future. The CCBL should not expect to obtain all consultation results from one single public opinion poll as it will be an unfair demand. Indeed, it is difficult to find a scientific method which will guarantee accurate results. But the CCBL should at least indirectly encourage other parties to conduct public surveys and summarize the survey results for the consideration of the CCBL.

5.3.2 Reservations and objections: