Insights from Hong Kong

Posts Tagged ‘Anniversary’

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New Hong Kong Chief Executive Forced to Flee from Town Hall Meeting

In Hong Kong, Public Affairs on 3 July 2012 at 1:57 PM

It wasn’t supposed to start like this.

On his first full day in the job, Hong Kong’s newly appointed Chief Executive convened a town hall meeting in Tuen Mun. He has promised to visit each of the 18 districts that make up this nation. CY Leung was the first Chief Executive to host an open forum. Past sessions had been led by lower-level government bureaucrats.

Problem was, that an open forum means it was open. To the public. And some members of the public don’t like the new Chief Executive.

Just on Sunday people gathered to mark the 15th anniversary of Hong Kong’s return to China. Only problem was they weren’t there to celebrate. In true Hong Kong fashion tens of thousands gathered in protest. And in true Hong Kong fashion police estimated 63,000 attendees while organisers estimated 400,000. We do love a good protest in Hong Kong! (See my earlier post on FacingChina.me.)

There was even a case on Sunday where protesters covered a police motorcycle in stickers and handbills and protests and placards.

Oh – and Hu Jintao flew back to China after three days on Sunday. On his first day here the President of China conducted an inspection of the troops of the People’s Liberation Army stationed here in Hong Kong. The open top truck with the senior leader driving past gathered troops was very “Kim Jong-Il-esque.”

Amid all this simmering (and bubbling) tension the new Chief Executive strode off to meet the people. Dressed in an orange polo shirt he started well with his commitment to a more equitable form of government. But soon opposing views filled the air and protesters filled the room. Our new Chief Executive was hustled from the meeting by security guards and holed up in an ante-room for an hour until they could coordinate his escape.

CY Leung escapes town hall meeting in Tuen Mun

It is an ignoble start for a new ruler. Leung was a much-loved alternative candidate to the pro-Beijing alternative Henry Tang. And his election was an old-style one where he worked the phones and the press and the meetings to garner as many votes as possible. He was seen as a viable and different leader.

But in the past few weeks that love has soured as details of a series of illegal structures at his residence came to light. Leung professed ignorance, said it was previous owners, and asked for more time. In a crisis you never get more time.

It’s most likely that CY Leung is the highest profile scapegoat for a city’s frustrations. The economy is under-performing. Income inequality is at its highest ever. Housing prices have increased 80% in the last three years. And as of Sunday we’re only 35 years from full integration with China.

Perhaps the single biggest mistake Leung made was to start a listening tour so soon after widespread national protests. He should have allowed more time to pass before meeting in public forums. Yet now that one has been upset and shown to embarrass the Chief Executive, future meetings will no doubt be targeted.

CY Leung needs to find a new way to hear the complaints and issues affecting the citizens. And he has to do so in a way that won’t create damaging front page headlines.

 

 

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Where are we from? HONG KONG! What do we like? PROTESTS!

In Hong Kong, Public Affairs on 29 June 2012 at 12:30 PM

We here in Hong Kong love a good protest. We arrive en masse in an orderly fashion - queuing politely to exit the MTR at the designated assembly spot. We bring placards and banners with wonderfully pithy sayings. We gather around a wide range of causes from income inequality to political corruption to basic freedoms.

Hell, we even protested at a Dolce & Gabbana store when they refused to allow Hong Kongers to take photos of their store (something they allow Mainlanders to do).

Protesters Outside D&G

But nothing brings this city together more than Hu Jintao, the President of China. Tens of thousands will show up to protest…everything.

Hu is due in town later today. He’s booked out two hotels for his entourage (The Grand Hyatt and the Hyatt Regency). He’s staying three days. On 1 July he will swear int he new Chief Executive CY Leung and his Administration. He flies out that same day just before the biggest protest gets underway at Victoria Park.

But Hu may have troubles seeing the protesters.  Police are deploying two metre high water barriers around the hotel and convention centre.

Two meter (six-foot) tall barriers block protesters

The officially designated protest zones have not been revealed yet. Yet most are expected further from the action than usual. To overcome this distance a smaller zone is prepared. This will accommodate 5-10 protesters. Hong Kong government officials will accept written messages for Hu.

“Your problem just got bigger. Think, what have you done?”

Of course these preparations have been decried by protest organisers. Some have called it a “public relations show.”

“Hu will have no chance to see the city’s real face. Hong Kong has become a city of barriers,” said Lee Cheuk-yan of the Labour Party

On the upside we may all be able to protest in peace. Police have been advised to avoid arresting anyone during the demonstrations. This has never been a city of rowdy demonstration. Don’t expect a WEF-Davos-G20 melee.

Hong Kong is a polite town, even when there are 500,000 of us united in protest.

Polite but still angry!

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Small “t” thanks from Hong Kong to China: Handover Anniversary Gifts Fail to Impress

In China, Hong Kong, Public Affairs on 28 June 2012 at 11:09 AM

It’s that time of year in Hong Kong. On 1 July the public celebrates the anniversary of the reunification with China. (Back in 1997 it was called a ‘Handover’ but today it’s a ‘Reunification’.) This year marks 15 years. According to Gifts.com we should be in line for some Swarovski or other crystal items.

Maybe a Dragon?

Instead China announced a series of economic gifts to the city. The most notable boosts Hong Kong’s status as an international RMB clearing centre. Mainlanders can open offshore bank accounts in Hong Kong. Hong Kongers can open RMB accounts in China and convert more RMB daily. In the past they could covert CNY20,000 daily. That limit will rise to 80,000 to 100,000 per day.

Beijing will allow “third parties” to use Hong Kong for trade and investment settlement in RMB. Analysts say that a “third-party” could even be London or Singapore. This boosts Hong Kong’s role as a yuan settlement centre. (Please note that RMB [Renminbi], CNY [Chinese Yuan] and Yuan all refer to the same thing – the national currency of China.)

Both markets will be able to invest in each other’s stock exchanges through ETFs (Exchange Traded Funds). That may not take off at the moment as lacklustre stock market performance has removed a number of investors from the market.

Other “gifts” include allowing Mainlanders to board cruises from Hong Kong to global destinations. That will benefit the US$2 billion cruise terminal under construction at the end of the old Kai Tak runway. The Foster + Partners building is taking shape against the Kowloon skyline and is expected to be operational by mid-2013.

“Farewell and thanks for all the yuan!”

Other gifts include policy packages aimed at trade, finance, education, science, technology and tourism.

For some, expectations were high. Hong Kong had become accustomed to large gifts at anniversary time. Yet many of these policy initiatives were already in schedule and few made a large impact. The most welcomed was the opening of the cruise industry to Mainlanders.

Otherwise, Hong Kong is saying a polite thank you with a very small “t” at the front.

Sidebar: Blue Box mistake? Red Box mistake?

My neighbour Jasper seems accustomed to the dog house. He even has short-hand for ways to overcome marital problems. There are blue box problems and red box problems. What’s that mean?

I’m kind of sorry.

Stay out too late drinking and wake your daughter as you stumble home? That’s a problem best solved by a gift from Tiffany.

I am REALLY sorry!

Book family holiday tickets for summer on the right date but a month too late, then find out your family will be sweating through a Hong Kong summer? That’s a red box problem. You’ll need to get an “I’m Sorry” gift from Cartier.

His wife hasn’t signaled if his solution is working. I only fear for him the day he arrives with a red box and she has no idea why. That should lead to a feisty discussion!

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Counting Candles: Tiananmen Square Anniversary Gathering in Hong Kong

In China, Hong Kong on 5 June 2012 at 8:58 AM

Yesterday marked 23 years since the crack-down in Tinanamen Square in Beijing. Hong Kong is the only city in China where crowds can gather to commemorate the deaths of pro-democracy protesters. Organisers and media report crowds numbering 180,000 – an increase on last year’s record gathering of 150,000.

The mass gathering occurs in the weeks preceding the 15th anniversary of the Handover of Hong Kong to Mainland China. There an agreement was struck ensuring “one country, two systems” for 50 years. Having been in Hong Kong that seemed a lifetime away. Now those special privileges expire in 35 years. My son will be 43 then.

Perhaps it’s the ticking clock on Hong Kong’s status as a special zone that inspired more to rally. Perhaps it’s part of the global malaise that led to the Occupy Movement. Perhaps it’s just a new generation that rallied behind last night’s theme: “Don’t forget to remember.”

There is no danger of forgetting, as the hundreds of thousands in Hong Kong proved last night – one candle at a time.

Sidebar: Even Markets Remember

HONG KONG: The Shanghai Stock Exchange produced an uncanny – and politically delicate – numerical result on the 23rd anniversary of the military crackdown in Tiananmen Square, an odd echo of a tragedy that China’s leaders have tried desperately to erase from their country’s consciousness.

The index fell 64.89 points on Monday, a figure that looks like June 4, 1989. In yet another unusual development, the index opened on Monday at 2346.98 – a figure that looks like the date of the crackdown written backward, followed by the 23rd anniversary.

Chinese censors, showing characteristic heavy-handedness, especially on anniversaries of Tiananmen Square, began blocking searches for “stock market,” “Shanghai stock” and “Shanghai stock market” and started deleting large numbers of microblog postings about the numerical fluke.

(Article displayed courtesy of The Times of India.)

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