Hong Kong, Victim of the Chinese-American Standoff

Beijing wants to strengthen its hold over Hong Kong, disregarding the “one country, two systems” policy. Donald Trump’s diehard attitude unfortunately does not inspire moderation in the Chinese.

The “one country, two systems” principle which has governed relations between China and Hong Kong since 1997 is on its last legs. On May 28, the Chinese National People’s Congress is expected to approve a bill imposing a “national security” law on Hong Kong. Under Article 23 of Hong Kong’s mini-constitution, this text prohibits any act of treason, secession, sedition and subversion against China. It has never been formally introduced due to considerable opposition from the people of Hong Kong, who consider it a threat to their freedom.*

One year after massive peaceful demonstrations against the bill which is aimed at facilitating extraditions to Beijing, six months after elections that were marked by a democratic tidal wave, the Chinese leadership has decided to take no notice and impose a law in Hong Kong that its inhabitants certainly do not want. The message is simple: Hong Kong is China. Only Beijing is in a position to say what still comes under the “two systems.”

This demonstrates above all else that Xi Jinping has now reached an impasse. Over the past year, the Chinese leadership has made an increasing number of mistakes when it comes to Hong Kong, transforming an initially limited protest movement into an uprising against the communist regime. Thousands of young people have been arrested, some of them have been imprisoned, and Hong Kong’s youth has nothing left to lose. They are not protesting in the hope of better days ahead, but against a future that, for them, cannot get any worse. Introducing a national security law is evidently not going to restore calm.

Power Play

How far is Beijing willing to go? A new tightening of the regime would unfortunately be the next logical step for a policy that equates any challenge with “sedition” and sees any dialogue as a sign of weakness. As for the West, it seems short on solutions. Through an increasing number of provocations concerning Beijing over the past few months, Washington has lost credibility. The more the White House claims to be coming to the aid of Hong Kong’s democrats, the more the Chinese people support their own government.

Beijing’s argument, that Hong Kong democrats are being “manipulated” by the United States, is not credible, but the use of protesters by the Trump administration has damaged their cause. Beijing’s latest power play is as much a response to Donald Trump by a Chinese power that has become nationalist as it is an action designed to restore calm in Hong Kong.

On Friday, May 22, Josep Borrell, the high representative of the European Union for foreign affairs, referenced the European Union’s attachment to the “one country, two systems” principle, which allows Hong Kong to enjoy a “high degree of autonomy.” He highlighted the importance of preserving “democratic debate” and respecting human rights. But alas, Europe does not seem to be in a position to make the voice of reason heard in Beijing.

When Great Britain returned Hong Kong to China on July 1, 1997, the world was relatively optimistic, convinced that China and the West would be brought closer together. Hong Kong was supposed to be one of the means of bringing about this rapprochement. A quarter of a century later, it is unfortunately the reverse that has happened. Hong Kong has become the symbol of the difficult cohabitation of two ever more opposing systems.

*Editor’s note: On May 28, China’s National People’s Congress approved a proposal to implement the national security law.