Friday, March 11, 2005
Hong Kong people lost confidence
Interview with Emily Lau by Australian Broadcasting Corporation reporter Mark Colvin
Visit Emily Lau's website
MARK COLVIN: What next for Hong Kong, now that its chief executive Tung Chee-Hwa has ended the speculation and admitted that he is stepping down?
Tung Chee-Hwa has led Hong Kong since the handover from Britain to China in 1997.
For at least the last couple of years he's been doing so despite considerable and vocal opposition from many who saw him as much too close to Beijing, and not close enough to the people of Hong Kong itself.
His likely successor is the man who's been working as Mr Tung's deputy, the Chief Secretary Donald Tsang.
He's popular, but there's speculation that Beijing has its doubts about him.
Emily Lau leads the pro Democracy Frontier Party, and a short time ago I asked her about Tung Chee-Hwa's departure.
EMILY LAU: I think the Hong Kong people found it very frustrating to have a Chief Executive who acts like a lackey of Beijing, always there to second-guess the wishes of the masters up there and of course the wishes of a few tycoons who helped to put him in to office.
And time and time again, when people express their views on various issues, they were inevitably brushed aside, and of course culminating in a huge march on July 1st of 2003, when Mr Tung tried to bulldoze legislation on national security, through the Legislative Council.
People wanted democracy, but Mr Tung did not help to convey such wishes to Beijing, instead he helped Beijing to suppress the demands here, and hence we had another big march on July 1st last year.
So, I think people have lost patience, lost confidence in Tung and he had stayed on for far too long.
MARK COLVIN: In that sense, do you think that it's a victory for people power?
EMILY LAU: To a certain extent I think you can say that, definitely.
I mean put it the other way, if he had been performing well, he wouldn't have stepped down, and I think that the central Government also recognised that he is very much a liability.
But, the disturbing thing that's facing us now is the aftermath. It seems that now that Beijing has lost confidence in some of the people here, so they are moving in thick and fast to micro-manage everything.
Previously, maybe they were pulling strings from behind the scenes. Now, they are moving centre-stage.
MARK COLVIN: So you've lost Tung Chee-Hwa, but you're not necessarily going to get a more democratic leadership?
EMILY LAU: Not at all, in fact, I think we are taking a big retrograde step, because they are managing everything.
And so, Hong Kong people have been reduced, to just being disinterested bystanders.
MARK COLVIN: Does it matter to Hong Kong people?
There's a cynical view that says that Hong Kongers, what they really care about is economic growth, and if they've got that, democracy takes a backseat.
EMILY LAU: That's not true. Last year, in April last year, Beijing has already decided that Hong Kong cannot have democratic elections in the year 2007 and 2008, but then a few months later, more than half a million people turn out to march and you know, although Beijing has already said no, they still said, 'Yes, we want democracy.'
MARK COLVIN: But you still didn’t get a majority in the elections of course.
EMILY LAU: No, because the system was against us. So we want to change the system.
MARK COLVIN: So you say it's essentially, there's a gerrymander?
EMILY LAU: Yes, well, it's a system which only allow a very small handful of people to elect some members.
In some cases it's not even people, it's companies. One company, one vote, one bank, one vote, one transport company, one insurance company, one vote. I mean, how ludicrous!
Anyway, now with the departure of Tung, we would like to urge the central Government, to have some confidence in the Hong Kong people, because we are not trying to make Hong Kong independent, we are not trying to turn it into a base to subvert the Communist Party, but we want to have a high degree of autonomy.
It seems the central Government has learned nothing from the disaster of C.H Tung, and if so, we are doomed to repeat the same mistakes!
MARK COLVIN: What if they put in Donald Tsang, who's been a very respected and quite popular civil servant?
Will that calm your fears at all?
EMILY LAU: No, not at all. If Donald Tsang is going to be anointed to office and owe his support to Beijing and a few tycoons, he's going to act like C.H Tung all over again?
MARK COLVIN: So, what do you want and what is practicable to do, given that the Chinese in Beijing, presumably don't want the rest of the country looking at Hong Kong and saying well, we'd like some of that democracy too.
EMILY LAU: Well, a few weeks ago, nobody would've predicted that Mr Tung would step down, so, let's not talk about what is practicable, what is possible.
We will have to try and convince Beijing that Hong Kong is ready for democracy. That's what we want, we want the power to elect the Chief Executive, maybe Donald will still get elected. So be it, but he would behave very differently, if he were elected by the people at large, rather than handpicked by a few powerful people.
MARK COLVIN: Emily Lau, the leader of the pro-democracy, Frontier Party, in Hong Kong.
12:15 Posted in Hong Kong Tales | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Politics
Thursday, March 03, 2005
China leaves Hong Kong in limbo over leader's resignation
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China's decision to remove Hong Kong leader Tung Chee-hwa leaves the former British colony in limbo and raises questions about the territory's much-vaunted autonomy, analysts and commentators said.
Hong Kong newspapers all announced Wednesday that Tung would be stepping down as chief executive this month, but Tung as well as the Hong Kong and Chinese governments have refused all comment.
China's handling of Tung's resignation more than two years before his term was due to expire was criticised in Hong Kong, which returned to Chinese rule in 1997 under a system allowing the city a high degree of autonomy.
The South China Morning Post newspaper said the issue posed questions about Hong Kong's civil and economic freedoms, protected in the Basic Law mini-constitution under which the capitalist enclave returned to China.
"(This) could cast a shadow over the One Country, Two Systems concept," the paper said in an editorial.
"If the central government effectively removes him from office, we will be further away from the idea of 'Hong Kong people ruling Hong Kong'."
Christine Loh, convenor of independent think-tank Civic Exchange, described events as "Chinese political theatre at its most fascinating".
"Nothing is what it seems. There is little transparency and accountability," Loh said in her daily newsletter.
Under the terms of the 1997 handover from Britain, the free-wheeling capitalist enclave of seven million people on the southern Chinese coast was allowed to run its own affairs for a period of 50 years.
Commentators complained the news blackout and secretive handling of Tung's resignation was typical of a totalitarian state, not a modern capitalist society.
"This is what happens when you have a cockamamie system," broadcaster and pundit Steve Vines said on RTHK radio. "Nobody here is consulted, nobody is in the loop. It's no way of running (things)."
A senior Hong Kong government source said all news about Tung's future would come from the Chinese leadership.
"This has always been in China's hands -- they are his boss," said the source. "The news will come from them."
Newspapers Wednesday reported that Tung would step down citing ill health and stress.
They said he had offered to quit many times during his eight gaffe-prone years clouded by economic recessions, huge rows over democratic reform, policy woes and perceived interference by Beijing.
Christine Loh wondered whether the delay in China's confirmation indicated there had been squabbles over the terms of Tung's retirement.
"For someone in Tung's position to go, there has to be some negotiations on terms," she said. "The delay may signify negotiations have not been completed."
The delays served to highlight the failings of Tung's rule, she said.
"The danger in keeping silent for much longer is that it will be perceived as another crisis of governance ... except this time it will affect Beijing's handling of Hong Kong affairs."
Senior politicians have been left guessing when Tung might go. Cabinet member Selina Chow told reporters to wait 48 hours for news while pro-Tung legislator Ma Lik said they should hold on for a week.
Tung's possible early exit has been mooted since 2003 when his government was plunged into crisis after more than 500,000 people took to the streets to protest proposed anti-subversion laws proposed by China.
His position was further weakened last year by a bruising battle with pro-democracy groups over the timing of democratic reforms. Another half million people marched through the streets in July 2004 to demand universal suffrage to elect Tung's successor in 2007.
His tenure reached its nadir in December when Tung and his cabinet were given a public dressing down by Chinese President Hu Jintao for their poor performance.
Copyright © 2005 Agence France Presse
01:48 Posted in Hong Kong Tales | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Politics