On the 1st of July 1997, The Chinese flag was raised in Hong Kong, signalling the last moments of true liberty the citizens of Hong Kong would experience in their homeland.
Political & Social freedoms, the maintaining of an independent judicial system & basic rights are all things that were promised by the People’s Republic of China to the people of Hong Kong & The United Kingdom- which was faithfully handing over the fate of the nation to this emerging global power. However, as we move into the 2020s, we can see this is far from the reality.
Pro-democracy “political dissidents” assassinated in staged suicides, the proposed extradition treaty with the mainland & the disappearances of bookstore owners who held banned texts in China show the many flaws in the situation.
But isn’t Hong Kong a democracy? Can’t the Legislative Council (The HK Parliament/ AKA: LegCo) veto these Authoritarian laws & conserve this now dwindling beacon of liberty?
The Subtleties of a Unique Democracy
In every election, Pro-democracy & Anti-Establishment parties have won the majority of the people’s vote, but these are only 40/70 seats. The remaining seats are occupied by various Commercial & Industrial Representatives. For a country renowned for being the Gateway to China for business, this may seem like a decent enough idea, but when commerce holds almost as great a weight as the businesses that are supposed to benefit, the cracks in this intricate web of oppression becomes visible. Surprise surprise; less than a quarter of these seats are Pro-democracy… It turns out being friends with China is good for business. Additionally, part of the handover treaty was that eventually all the members of LegCo would be elected by the people, but a millennium and two decades have passed, and we’ve yet to see it.
The Protests
With the claws of Xi Jinping digging ever deeper into their lives, citizens took to the streets, just as they have done in annual marches ever since the handover, flying flags of an Independent Hong Kong, The UK & The US to represent the freedoms they are fighting for. The most recent protests are an evolution of this unfortunate tradition, sparked by the proposed extradition bill; enabling Hong Kong to send suspected criminals to China, which is widely known to discard fair trial & humane punishment. This bill also stumbles upon an understated issue in global politics; Taiwan, as the extradition treaty was originally to send a suspected murderer back to Taiwan, however China simply claims Taiwan to be a “rogue state,” but that’s a topic for another day.
The National Security law emerged as a gigantic middle finger to the world, a death sentence for Hong Kong as we know it today, Beijing knows it can get away with ignoring the promised “One Country, Two Systems” policy.
Breaking international treaties isn’t something that many can say to have gotten away with, but if the international community continues to only glance at the situation in Hong Kong, it may well be something that Jinping can add to his repertoire.
Though I feel sympathy for the people of Hong Kong fighting for their rights, it’s hard for me to empathise, having never been oppressed ~ but actively encouraged to debate the society we live in. Sat at my desk in a cosy town in West Cheshire, I'm trying to do my bit by writing this to ask you what you can do. Truth be told, I don’t know what that is, if there was a button to press & give everyone on this planet freedom from oppression & dystopian societies, I would be on that. But it instead comes down to the individual, who fights for others & protects their ideals, and that may be you. I can’t ask for less than for you to do what you know is right.
Matthew Minnis 24/06/20
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