Debated with myself, whether to bother posting.... Oh well, here goes:
People should calm down a bit about the non-renewal of the HK Visa of the FT editor and start thinking. He CHAIRED a meeting advocating the SECESSION of Hong Kong from the PRC (that is what 'independence' means). This means he chaired a meeting advocating illegal activities. Cancellation of Visa follows. End of story. If a Xinhua or CCTV reporter chaired a meeting on the restoration of independence to Hawaii in Honolulu or a meeting on the restoration of Eastern Prussia to Germany in Warsaw, they'd be persona-non-grata'd immediately as well - in the latter case they'd be lucky to escape a long prison sentence.
Just a reminder: Hong Kong is NOT independent. The Basic Law and other systems are NOT meant to create an independent entity. They were put in place to transition Hong Kong from British rule to PRC rule. The end state was decided in the 1980s and remains unchanged: By 2047, Hong Kong will be just another city in China.
Everything else is just political scheming (lots of money for little work in HK politics) and trying to use HK as a cattle prod for China (luckily, this works less and less).
Having lived in HK for over 11 years now and 10 years in China before that, I would argue that the handover was completely bungled (on purpose?). China should have appointed a succession of 'governors' for HK (parallel to British governors) with the task of slowly adjusting the system for full re-unification. Or, SAR status should have been limited to 10 (or 20) years with SEZ (plus?) for another 10 (or 20) years. That would have ensured that people didn't forget (on purpose) that HK was and is transitioning into the PRC...
On purpose ? I doubt it. Chicom doesnt ahve as much control over China/Chinese as imagined by the West. To be honest, judging by the actions (towards local police, officials, service providers, rules and regulations etc.) of a lot of the first time chinese tourists abroad, u d think they are over indulged by the authorities and officials at home...ironic or what.
Debated with myself, whether to bother posting.... Oh well, here goes:
People should calm down a bit about the non-renewal of the HK Visa of the FT editor and start thinking. He CHAIRED a meeting advocating the SECESSION of Hong Kong from the PRC (that is what 'independence' means). This means he chaired a meeting advocating illegal activities. Cancellation of Visa follows. End of story. If a Xinhua or CCTV reporter chaired a meeting on the restoration of independence to Hawaii in Honolulu or a meeting on the restoration of Eastern Prussia to Germany in Warsaw, they'd be persona-non-grata'd immediately as well - in the latter case they'd be lucky to escape a long prison sentence.
Just a reminder: Hong Kong is NOT independent. The Basic Law and other systems are NOT meant to create an independent entity. They were put in place to transition Hong Kong from British rule to PRC rule. The end state was decided in the 1980s and remains unchanged: By 2047, Hong Kong will be just another city in China.
Everything else is just political scheming (lots of money for little work in HK politics) and trying to use HK as a cattle prod for China (luckily, this works less and less).
Having lived in HK for over 11 years now and 10 years in China before that, I would argue that the handover was completely bungled (on purpose?). China should have appointed a succession of 'governors' for HK (parallel to British governors) with the task of slowly adjusting the system for full re-unification. Or, SAR status should have been limited to 10 (or 20) years with SEZ (plus?) for another 10 (or 20) years. That would have ensured that people didn't forget (on purpose) that HK was and is transitioning into the PRC...
On purpose ? I doubt it. Chicom doesnt ahve as much control over China/Chinese as imagined by the West. To be honest, judging by the actions (towards local police, officials, service providers, rules and regulations etc.) of a lot of the first time chinese tourists abroad, u d think they are over indulged by the authorities and officials at home...ironic or what.