Beijing has ruled out allowing direct elections in Hong Kong from 2007 but says it is ready to admit more people into the tightly controlled committee that picks the city's leader.
The pro-China Wen Wei Ponewspaper said today Beijing will draw the line soon on Hong Kong election reforms, but did not say when the announcement would be made.
"The immediate transition to direct elections via one man, one vote has been ruled out but the question of giving political participation to more Hong Kong people is up for discussion," the newspaper said, citing unidentified sources.
Political analysts have long agreed that there is no way Beijing will allow the territory to elect its own leaders, fearing it would lose control over the southern Chinese city, but this is the first time that a Beijing mouthpiece has stated so clearly the misgivings of the central government.
Analysts say Beijing is worried that Hong Kong people could elect a leader it cannot trust and challenge it. It also fears growing calls for more democracy in Hong Kong may spill over into the mainland.
Frustrated with the poor performance of the Beijing-backed local government and years of economic hardship, Hong Kong people have been agitating for full direct elections from 2007, which is possible under the city's constitution.