A dangerous political trend

Updated: 2012-10-10 06:04

By Thomas Chan(HK Edition)

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A dangerous political trend

There have been undesirable political developments in Hong Kong in recent months. In the demonstrations against national education, "liberation of Sheung Shui", and opposition to the development of northeast New Territories, there has been a growing sentiment opposed not just to the CY Leung administration, but also to the central government and even the handover of Hong Kong in 1997.

Some individuals who took part in the demonstrations took out the old colonial flag of Hong Kong and lately a group staged a public demonstration not only with the defunct colonial flag, but also sang the British national anthem and shouted the slogan "Chinese get out." This is the first time in the 15 years after the handover that a political group has so openly adopted an anti-Chinese and anti-handover stance. Although the number of people taking part was small, just a few dozen at the most, the political message was rather strong and alarming.

Anti-Communist feelings have a long history in Hong Kong, as a significant number of local residents were illegal and legal immigrants fleeing the mainland for Hong Kong. Politically they have been hostile to the Communist government in the mainland. Yet, since the 1956 Nationalist riot, there have not been any public demonstrations of political hostility toward the Communist government in the mainland, not even during the 1967 leftist riot. Despite the unwillingness of many for the sovereignty change, there has not been open confrontation in opposition to the handover before or after 1997.

Hong Kong has suffered years of economic stagnation after 1997 partly because of the two global crises from which Hong Kong as a world city was unable to escape, but also partly because of the incompetence and poor governance of the last two administrations of the SAR government. Economic and social polarization and the feelings of relative deprivation have bred social dissatisfaction and political frustration in many of the marginal and youth groups in society.

From overseas experiences, one may argue that right wing extremism against new immigrants and outside political and economic influences is a logical outcome of such political frustration for many of these marginal groups, which do not see chances of socio-economic improvement for them in the foreseeable future; Hong Kong is no exception. In fact, given the long tradition of anti-Communism in society, it would be easy for the groups to blame their frustration on the Communist "takeover" of Hong Kong. As an opposite to the Communist "takeover", it is also logical for them to see the colonial times as the good old days and the colonial administration under the British as a better government.

However, the small team of youths in the pro-British demonstration seems to be more organized than what we expect from those arising among marginal groups. The team has the finances, and the willingness to spend money to make a large number of the colonial flags for distribution. After participating in larger demonstrations over a variety of issues, this group was able to organize its own demonstration. Although the response was rather poor, only a few dozen, it appeared to give the group confidence and political determination to make a public debut on its own.

It may be that the team and those behind the scenes made a calculation that by going public forcefully at the current time of political confusion, they may be able to attract more support from other political groups protesting against the SAR government.It appears to have been their purpose to build a political momentum to serve their purpose of creating a large opposition force to oppose the handover. If they have enough numbers, they might be able to mount more radical political demands than the general slogans they put forth.

Already among the local oppositional political parties and groups, there have been arguments and suggestions for redefining the "One Country, Two Systems" policy, which actually means more autonomy than already granted by the Basic Law. Being part of the establishment/Legislative Council, the politicians are still shy about calling for independence of Hong Kong.

A dubious organization has advocated city autonomy for Hong Kong in the fashion of autonomous cities of Europe in Medieval Times. Its leader has written an essay circulated on the Internet emphasizing very much the need to have a restricted zone as a buffer for Hong Kong against the mainland, and called for intervention by foreign armies to defend the autonomy of Hong Kong when the mainland falls into political chaos. The essay calls for the defence of the northeast and eastern areas of the New Territories against development plan of the SAR government, and it turns the dispute over local planning choices into a politicized and ideologized defence action against the allegedly Communist controlled administration.

There seem to be many efforts from different individuals and organizations being made to create a broader front to question and challenge the political legitimacy of the SAR government and hence the handover of 1997. The political opposition now in Hong Kong is no longer the same as that in previous years. It is no longer just aiming at electoral success and winning of seats in the Legislative Council. Instead, it has embarked on a more radical departure for some sort of regime change in Hong Kong in favor of an autonomous and anti-Communist one.

Given the electoral success of the pro-establishment political parties in the recent Legislative Council election, as well as the political orientation of the Leung administration, one is certain that no radical change would be possible in the current institutional setup. The Basic law and the "One Country, Two Systems" will continue to be honored. Outside the Legislative Council and on the street, however, there may be increasingly more politically engineered campaigns and movements to block the policies of the Leung administration and create political confusion and chaos.

In the confusion and chaos, there would be a chance for the pro-British groups to grow and gather force, to advocate and pressurize for the return to the institutions of the colonial Hong Kong before 1997.

The author is head of China Business Centre, Hong Kong Polytechnic University.

(HK Edition 10/10/2012 page3)