Hong Kong is one of my favorite cities in the world. I like it almost as much as I like Singapore and that says a lot. I first visited the city in 2000, only three years after the tragedy that saw it pass from British Control to that of the Communist Chinese government in Beijing. Kind of like about Brexit, I’ve never really forgiven the UK for that horrendous mistake – although, because of the problem of the lease on the New Territories and the intractable position of China about wanting land that was never really theirs, I am not sure what else might have been done.
But at the time, the West and Britain, in particular, had to tell themselves a huge lie to make the distasteful event more palatable. They had to tell themselves and the world that they believed the Communist masters when they said in the Joint Declaration issued at the time, that they would continue to allow:
The current social and economic systems in Hong Kong will remain unchanged, and so will the lifestyle. Rights and freedoms, including those of the person, of speech, of the press, of assembly, of association, of travel, of movement, of correspondence, of strike, of choice of occupation, of academic research and of religious belief will be ensured by law in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Private property, ownership of enterprises, legitimate right of inheritance and foreign investment will be protected by law.
In 1997, China promised to not interfere for at least 50 years and I think Britain hoped it would be longer. Britain and more importantly the United States believed it at the time, but Hong Kongers understood that Beijing was not going to be patient. Many had already left for Canada and other greener shores out of fear of what might happen when the commies took over – only to come back when it seemed that Beijing might actually be respecting the unique character of the Special Administrative Region.
Of course, they had no such intention. Incrementally through their hand-picked puppets as the Chief Executive, starting with shit for brains Tung Che Wa and on down to the current incumbent Carrie Lam, bit by bit, the unique character of the city was being torn down. I don’t often agree with Jeff Jacoby of the Boston Globe, but he is right when he stated in a recent column:
But China, like all communist tyrannies, regards freedom of thought, political openness, and liberal norms as dangerous contagions. It never had any intention of preserving and protecting Hong Kong’s civil liberties. In recent years, notwithstanding the guarantees in the Joint Declaration, Beijing has “jailed activists, used the courts to disqualify democratically elected opposition lawmakers, expelled a foreign journalist, and banned a political party that advocated Hong Kong independence,” to quote a Wall Street Journal summary of developments in the city.
“One country, two systems” was always a dishonorable delusion. Britain’s surrender of Hong Kong was a shameful betrayal, as anyone should have seen at the time. But Western governments and corporations, in their ravenous hunger for access to the Chinese market, consistently turned a blind eye to Beijing’s repression, bad faith, and flouting of international standards. China, in turn, drew the logical conclusion — that it need not even pretend to uphold its commitment to Hong Kong’s freedoms. So it hasn’t: In 2017, the Chinese foreign ministry sneeringly declared the joint declaration “no longer has any practical significance.”
I have to admire the people of Hong Kong who set a brave example for the world by taking to the streets, even when they knew the game was rigged against them, and the Western Democracies, who are in a position to shame China into doing the right thing – especially during a trade war – would do nothing and say nothing.
Actually, it was worse than nothing when the shitgibbon President of the US said something incredibly stupid, ” So, I hope it all works out for China and for Hong Kong,”
Don’t think he is getting the f*cking point here!
Nonetheless, tens of thousands of Hong Kongers took the streets and let the boys in Beijing know what they think of their failure to respect the Basic Law.
And for now at least, it appears to have made a difference:
Hong Kong’s leader, Carrie Lam, has been forced into a humiliating concession after a week of mass protests, promising to indefinitely suspend efforts to pass a controversial new extradition law ahead of another demonstration that has been called for Sunday.
Lam’s announcement represented perhaps the most serious government climbdown in the face of public pressure since a security law was dropped in 2003, an important democratic moment for a city where people are free to demonstrate but not able to choose their leaders.
For how long is anyone’s guess, with many opposition leaders saying that this is just a tactical retreat, but that the goal of passing the extradition law remains.
There have already been reports of arrests in hospitals, as people sought treatment, and of digital activists.
“You can say it was a partial victory, in the sense she has halted this bill at this moment,” said the opposition lawmaker Charles Mok.
“We are not celebrating. Many of us were still not satisfied that she hasn’t withdrawn it completely, and the way she talked about police [brutality].”
I am happy for them, because if for nothing else they showed the rest of the world that you don’t have to accept the unacceptable in terms of law and policy. I admire the demonstrators for doing it – they have everything to lose and still they made a stand. It is an example Americans should take to heart and we should find ways to support them.
Hong Kong, as Hemlock wrote many years ago, deserves better.
P.S. Hemlock has been doing some excellent reporting over at Big Lychee. Spike has a pretty good post up too.