Hong Kongers erase digital footprints ahead of security laws - Nikkei Asian Review - "Despite assurances from officials in Beijing and Hong Kong that the law will only affect a small minority of people, the question of who determines that minority remains unanswered."Once you fall within the minority, none of the human-rights guarantees in the Basic Law or the common law system will apply"... A high school teacher in his late 20s, who requested anonymity, explained to Nikkei why he recently changed his name on Facebook: "We are now so afraid that we could be sold out by our so-called friends online."He has also changed his profile photo on social media, deleted politically sensitive posts, and has gone through his online "friends" list to check whether anyone could possibly target him for his liberal views on political and social issues. He screened his online contacts by reading through their recent postings of their political views... His colleague, who said he was not financially able to leave Hong Kong, will still prepare to depart when the "first-ever unimportant Hong Konger with no influence" is arrested for violating the laws. Until that time, he vows to stay defiant.It is too "suffocating" for him to be fully submissive, and he refuses to be "another animal living in the Animal Farm," drawing a parallel to George Orwell's classic novel in which the ruling pigs gradually turn an animal community into an authoritarian world."I know it's dwindling, but I'll just do as much as I can," the colleague said."To stay defiant is the best and the only way to deal with authoritarian regime," he said. "If you lose the spirit, there will be no hope.""
5 Takeaways From China's Hong Kong National Security Law - "Only after it was passed did Beijing unveil the full text of its controversial new national security law imposed by fiat on Hong Kong.On Tuesday an elite body within China's legislature voted unanimously to adopt the law in a rushed, secretive process. Even Hong Kong's chief executive, Carrie Lam, said she hadn't been allowed to see a draft before the law's passage... Beijing says the law is crucial to safeguarding Hong Kong's economic development and political stability. Legal experts and Hong Kong civil society leaders say the measure ends once and for all any remaining autonomy the region enjoys under Chinese rule...
Beijing will set up its own national security agency in Hong Kong beholden only to the mainland
The law applies to anyone, anywhere in the world...
That means an American penning an editorial for a U.S. newspaper that argues for, say, sanctions against China, could technically fall afoul of the law for "inciting hatred" against Beijing."It is asserting extraterritorial jurisdiction over every person on the planet," wrote Donald Clarke, a law professor at George Washington University, noting that the national security law is even more broad in scope than China's own criminal law...
Serious national security cases will be tried in mainland Chinese courts, by Chinese judges...
China can extradite suspects to mainland China to face trial — an extreme version of the extradition bill that was shelved after setting off mass peaceful protests last year in Hong Kong. Defendants in such cases will be subject to Chinese criminal law, sweeping aside Hong Kong's judicial system. China can also waive trial by jury and deny public access to the trial if the case is deemed to contain sensitive information."The [national security] law is a total destruction of Hong Kong's legal and judicial system," said Victoria Hui, a political science professor at the University of Notre Dame. China says Chinese and Hong Kong legal systems are incompatible, so China's must be seen as the default legal authority...
The law is designed to quell any dissent in Hong Kong against Beijing's rule...
Already, a chill is spreading through Hong Kong"
With Hong Kong security law, China writes broad international powers for itself - The Washington Post - "Equally striking in China’s move was the realpolitik logic underlying the new law: It signaled that China sees no need to abide by international agreements it made from a position of weakness in earlier years as a poorer nation. The law asserted extraterritorial jurisdiction over critics of Beijing anywhere in the world — potentially ensnaring those who set foot in Hong Kong... “Of course we’re not afraid,” Zhang Xiaoming, executive director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office, said of Washington’s retaliatory sanctions. “The era when the Chinese cared what others thought and looked up to others is in the past, never to return.” Speaking at a news conference Wednesday, he called the law a “birthday present” for Hong Kong — it took effect exactly 23 years after China regained the territory from Britain — and said it would serve as a “guardian angel” that would restore the protest-racked city’s prosperity and stability. Hours later, thousands of residents filled the streets, shouting pro-democracy and independence slogans, scrawling graffiti and building barricades to hold back police. Malls, shops and restaurants closed and traffic snarled, reminiscent of the chaotic scenes the law was meant to eliminate... Beijing has codified broad new powers for itself in Hong Kong, which means that going forward, it can send in troops without a request from local officials, extradite residents to the mainland and conduct surveillance on political opponents in the city while asserting it is following the letter of the law... China has made other geopolitical maneuvers in recent weeks as other nations remain preoccupied with the coronavirus pandemic and the United States reckons with a painful history of police violence and institutionalized racism. Twenty Indian troops were killed last month in border clashes with Chinese soldiers, the most serious conflict between the nuclear-armed neighbors in decades. Beijing also said last month it will bring formal espionage charges against Canadians Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig, a year and a half after they were detained in what was widely seen as retribution for the arrest in Canada of Meng Wanzhou, chief financial officer of the Huawei technology conglomerate... Hong Kong police announced they had made their first arrests under the new security law. A man was found with a flag that said “Hong Kong independence” in large lettering. (The flag had two tiny Chinese characters, which could be read to add “no to” before “Hong Kong independence.”)Police said calls for independence — a once-fringe idea that has gained traction in recent months — could amount to inciting others to commit secession, an act punishable under the security law."
What the new Hong Kong security law means for Canadians — everywhere - "many international legal experts quickly sounded the alarm to advise people who ever said anything critical of Chinese or Hong Kong authorities to avoid travelling to greater China.Cheung pointed out that people should also avoid boarding flights by Cathay Pacific and other vessels registered in Hong Kong, since the law also states that it applies to those who commit crimes “aboard ships or aircraft registered in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region... For Canadian activist Jody Chan of the Canadian solidarity group, Alliance Canada Hong Kong (ACHK), the idea of visiting the greater China region is already out of the question for her.Now she is researching which countries in the world have extradition treaties with China or Hong Kong, to avoid booking flights with connections in those places.“I would fear for my safety now even travelling to France or Italy, since they have extradition treaties with Hong Kong”... The law doesn’t just attempt to thrust a free-speech chill upon Hong Kong, which is home to 300,000 Canadian citizens, it also aims to stifle criticism about the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) outside of mainland China.”
Chinese envoy says Canada’s acceptance of Hong Kong refugees jeopardizes Canadians in former British colony - The Globe and Mail - " China’s ambassador to Canada is urging Ottawa to stop granting asylum to democracy activists from Hong Kong, whom he described as violent criminals, and warned that accepting these people could jeopardize the “health and safety” of 300,000 Canadians who live in the former British colony. Asked if he was issuing a threat, envoy Cong Peiwu replied: “That is your interpretation.”"
Life in prison for anyone who violates new Hong Kong security law imposed by China - "The legislation is perhaps more far reaching than the most pessimistic feared. Secession, subversion, terrorism and colluding with foreign forces now all carry a maximum sentence of life in prison.But they are drawn incredibly widely. Terrorism includes disrupting public transport. Subversion includes disrupting and preventing central Chinese government agencies or Hong Kong government agencies from performing their duties.And a national security committee will be established under the control of Beijing. Its operations will not be made public and its decisions cannot be challenged by Hong Kong courts.Many of last year's protests in Hong Kong easily meet the definitions of the new national security law."
Farewell, dear Hong Kong | Spectator USA - "By installing a puppet government with mediocre leadership skills, passing the security law and creating a notoriously opaque security bureau to enforce it, the CCP is essentially sabotaging whatever remaining leverage Hong Kong still has. It’s death by a thousand cuts.Without its cultural and intellectual DNA, Hong Kong simply isn’t Hong Kong. Twenty-seven years left of borrowed time has collapsed to zero. Decades ago, Milton Friedman said, ‘Hong Kong is the bellwether. If the Chinese stick to their agreement to let Hong Kong go its own path, then China will also go that way. If they don’t, that is a very bad sign.’"
The US is treating Hong Kong as mainland China. Business is starting to do the same - "Some tech companies have pulled back from the market, while companies have expressed concern about the new law's broad reach and ambiguity. The New York Times on Tuesday also announced that it would move some of its staff based in Hong Kong to Seoul as it began to "make contingency plans." Alongside the decision to end the special trading relationship Tuesday, Trump also signed a separate piece of legislation that would impose sanctions on businesses and individuals that are seen as helping China restrict Hong Kong's autonomy.Without its privilege as a special economy under US law, "there won't be big differences between Hong Kong and other big Chinese cities like Beijing and Shanghai," said Simon Lee, senior lecturer of international business at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. "Foreign companies will think whether they need to maintain their existing scale of operations in Hong Kong."... In a statement, the Chinese Foreign Ministry called on Washington to "stop interfering in any way in China's internal affairs, including Hong Kong affairs." It also urged the Trump administration to refrain from implementing its new law regarding Hong Kong... Foreign businesses have expressed concern about the new law. More than 68% of businesses that responded to a survey conducted by the American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong that published earlier this week said they were "more concerned" than a month ago."
How ironic, considering that China is not supposed to interfere in Hong Kong's internal affairs
China's Great Firewall descends on Hong Kong internet users - "One goal of the restrictions in Hong Kong could simply be making access to certain platforms and technology difficult enough that regular citizens will not bother – a strategy analysts say authorities also use on the mainland.But Hongkongers, accustomed to decades of unrestricted access to information, may not be so easily deterred. Since Beijing announced its plan in late May to enforce the security law, searches and purchases of virtual private networks (VPNs) and proxies to hide IP addresses have soared.Many have migrated from Telegram to the encrypted messaging app Signal, and some residents have turned to sim cards from providers in other countries. Kwong says it is not just young protesters who are taking action – her parents recently moved their family group chat to Signal."
China censors Hong Kong internet, U.S. tech giants resist - "With pro-democracy books quickly pulled out of libraries and schools, the government signalled in the long document released on Monday night that it would also expect full obedience online.Police were granted powers to control and remove online information if there were "reasonable grounds" to suspect the data breaches the national security law.Internet firms and service providers can be ordered to remove the information and seize their equipment, with fines and up to one year in jail if they refuse to comply.The companies are also expected to provide identification records and decryption assistance. However the biggest American tech companies offered some resistance."
On Tiananmen Anniversary, Hong Kong Criminalizes Mocking China's National Anthem - "Hong Kong's legislature has passed a bill making it a crime to poke fun at China's national anthem — a move that puts new limits on anniversary events marking the Tiananmen Square massacre. Under the ban, it is illegal to alter the lyrics of the anthem, or to sing it "in a distorted or disrespectful way.""
Let’s build a self-governing Hong Kong in Britain, in defiance of big bully China - "Boris Johnson’s offer of “a path to citizenship” to three million Hong Kongers has attracted criticism – though not, perhaps, from the expected quarters. The loudest complaints have come, not from angry nativists, but from die-hard Europhiles who are annoyed at Leavers for failing to live up to their caricature. Voters back the idea – “one of the biggest changes in our visa system in history”, as the PM rightly calls it – by 42 per cent to 24.There are, broadly speaking, two arguments for immigration: that it benefits the immigrants, and that it benefits the receiving country. In general, the two arguments are separate: the neediest refugees do not necessarily make the best economic migrants. But, in the case of Hong Kong, they fuse. In doing the right thing by the people of that teeming entrepôt, we would be doing ourselves an immense favour... Why does Beijing care about Britain’s visa policy? Because Hong Kong’s wealth benefits not just neighbouring provinces, but China as a whole. Mainland companies are able to list in a common-law territory where property is secure, judges are incorruptible and contracts are honoured.Hong Kong’s wealth is not accidental.In 1945, when the Japanese left, the territory was, by global standards, poor. Today, it is one of the wealthiest places on Earth. In the half century after 1960, Hong Kong’s GDP rose by an incredible 900 per cent. Income per head, adjusted for inflation, more than doubled – despite regular waves of penniless arrivals from the mainland.What explains that miracle? Partly the inheritance of British legal institutions; partly the laissez-faire policies pursued by John Cowperthwaite, the unassuming Scottish civil servant who oversaw Hong Kong’s economy after 1960; and partly the energy and enterprise of a self-selecting population that had fled socialism. For all its revanchist bluster, China recognises the value of Hong Kong, a gleaming gem at the mouth of the Pearl River. Moderates in the Chinese Communist Party, especially the older officials from the Xiang and Hu eras, fret that, like Othello, they risk throwing away a pearl richer than all their tribe. But, with Xi Jinping’s hardliners in the ascendancy, the pearl may be flung aside anyway so as to prove a point.If so, Britain should rush to retrieve it. If China won’t tolerate a free Hong Kong on its territory, let us rebuild it on ours. As well as offering a path to citizenship for Hong Kongers, we should offer them space to build a new self-governing city – a charter city, as is currently being proposed by a group within the territory. Let them replicate the tax rates and legal institutions that raised Hong Kong to the highest opulence. Let that city be open to settlement to both British and Hong Kong nationals."
China says not legally bound to 50 years of Hong Kong autonomy - Nikkei Asian Review - ""The laws currently in force in Hong Kong will remain basically unchanged," the declaration said. The document was registered as a legally binding treaty at the United Nations... China also rejects that it is legally bound to uphold the Sino-British Declaration. "The basic policies regarding Hong Kong declared by China in the Joint Declaration are China's statement of policies, not commitment to the U.K. or an international obligation as some claim," Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said... Some experts disagree. "It is true that China stated its own policies, but the U.K. agreed to them, so this is not a purely domestic issue," Hiroyuki Banzai, a professor at Tokyo's Waseda University, said."
China's crackdown on Hong Kong is purging teachers - Los Angeles Times - "a middle school music teacher’s contract wasn’t renewed after she failed to prevent students from performing a protest anthem during midterm exams... Two university educators known for their political activism, Benny Tai and Shiu Ka-chun, say their institutions were pressured to fire them in July. Afterward, China’s Liaison Office in Hong Kong hailed the terminations as a “purification of the teaching environment.” The harm to Hong Kong’s reputation for educational freedom has been swift, with academic associations around the world ruling out the city for future conventions and seminars... Shiu, one of the recently dismissed college educators, said former colleagues at Hong Kong Baptist University now shun him for fear of angering the government. One former co-worker invited Shiu to lunch but insisted on meeting at a restaurant far from campus to avoid being seen.“You’d think I was having an affair”... Support for Beijing in Hong Kong is by no means scant, a reflection of the decades China has spent cultivating influence since the days of British rule. Though still in the minority, many welcome the crackdown on protesters and their sympathizers. One group formed in May to monitor schools, teachers and learning materials said it has recruited 800 volunteers, including parents, teachers and students. “We ask the informants for evidence and verify with the schools,” said David Cua, who heads Help Our Next Generation. “If children are unknowingly contaminated [with anti-government thinking], shouldn’t teachers face the punishment they deserve?”"
China Uncensored - Posts - "Hong Kong Police in the movies: infiltrating the triads to take down international crime lords
Hong Kong Police in reality: Arresting teenagers for social media posts"
Hong Kong: China arrests 10 after intercepting boat 'fleeing Hong Kong' - "Chinese authorities have arrested at least 10 people after intercepting a boat believed to be heading to Taiwan from Hong Kong, local reports say.China's coastguard said the arrests were made on Sunday morning off the southern province of Guangdong, near Hong Kong.Hong Kong media reports said those on board the vessel were trying to reach Taiwan to claim political asylum... The reports said Hong Kong activist Andy Li was among those detained.Mr Li, who was arrested earlier this month for alleged collusion with foreign forces and money laundering, was detained on suspicion of "unlawfully crossing the border", the South China Morning Post reported, citing police sources.It was not immediately clear what those now in custody might be charged with. Attempts by people from Hong Kong to flee the territory by boat are considered to be rare."
Xi Jinping's Multipolar World - *Lame meme equating the Hong Kong protests and the George Floyd Unrest*
Comments: "The 4 officers in Minneapolis now are facing criminal charge.But what about HK police that also killed people with the same brutality? Nothing!"
"Didn’t know Minessota have a totalitarian government with a single corrupt party from the far-left trying to keep their authoritarian laws over their basic rights..."
"Hong Kong protesters didn’t loot, they used tables and shit from wherever they could to create barricades, to go at it against cops. Sometimes the barricates would end up lit on fire. What they did vandalize to send a message was government offices. Big difference from breaking into stores to brun them and steal shit to go home with. "
Comments (elsewhere): "I was in Hong Kong in 2019 during the riots on and after October 1. The destruction was very targeted. In Mong Kok, virtually every Chinese-owned owned bank and corporation (like the Xiaomi store, Bank of China) was on fire and had their windows smashed, while the surrounding buildings were completely untouched. The biggest targets were the metro stations, again because they're public property (and it's the state they're protesting against). I fully support the protests in Minneapolis but people have to target their violence to the state and large corporations that influence the state. I didn't see any looting in Hong Kong."
"What is your point? That the people of HK are better at using properly targeted violence under a way worse situation of oppresssion?"
BBC Radio 4 - From Our Own Correspondent Podcast, Difficult choices in Hong Kong - "The city which has always been fiercely proud of its freedoms, could become very different in the future. Many have been waiting anxiously for the details of the National Security Law Beijing imposed on Hong Kong. The full tax was kept away from the public until the moment it took effect on June 30th. At 11pm, it finally came. I was sitting alone in my living room poring over the text. The law criminalizes secession subversion, terrorism and collusion with external forces with harsh penalties up to life imprisonment. Critics say the offenses are defined vaguely with the goal of silencing descent. It was a poor choice of bedtime reading. I stayed up till 3am. The next day, the first of July was the 23rd anniversary of Hong Kong's handover. A senior Chinese official described the law as a birthday gift that will safeguard Hong Kong's future. Some welcome the new legislation saying that it can restore calm and stability. I was deployed to cover the protest against the law on that day. Police used tear gas, pepper spray and water cannon. I have become accustomed to these after last year's protest triggered by bill which will allow extradition to mainland China. Police also made the first arrest under the new law. Some were arrested for holding and possessing flags and banners calling for Hong Kong's independence."
Missing Hong Kong protester Alexandra Wong 'was held in mainland China' - "A prominent Hong Kong protester has made her first public appearance in 14 months, telling the media she had been held in mainland China.Alexandra Wong, 64, was nicknamed "Grandma Wong" and was often pictured waving a British flag at protests.She said she was detained last August in the border city of Shenzhen and forced to renounce her activism in writing.Ms Wong said she was also sent on a "patriotic tour" of Shaanxi province.While there, she had to sing the national anthem and was photographed waving the Chinese flag. She was then released on bail, she said, but was forbidden from returning to Hong Kong."
Hong Kong downsizing considered by one-third of Japanese companies - "A majority of Japanese companies with a presence in Hong Kong are concerned about the national security law imposed by China, a survey released Monday shows, with 34% contemplating restructuring operations there or leaving the territory entirely.The Hong Kong government claims the national security legislation has led to social stability. But out of 296 Japanese firms that answered the survey conducted in part by the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), only 1% reported seeing any positive effects. Some 8.5% said it was having a negative impact, such as dampening the appetite to invest. Meanwhile, 52% of the companies said they "are concerned" about the national security law. Another 15% said they were "very concerned." Just 19% report not being too concerned about the legislation.Regarding the reasons behind the concerns, the prospect of limits being placed on information came up 67% of the time. This was followed by the fear that the rule of law in Hong Kong will be undermined, which was mentioned at a 60% rate."
Damn CIA misinformation! Naive Japanese!
Facebook - "I cannot figure out any coherent moral framework in which The New York Timesjournalists stage a mutiny after Senator Tom Cotton's Op-Ed but let this piece by Regina Ip calling for the subjugation of Hong Kong get published without a single complaint.Oh and the Times also disabled comments on this article." Coherent moral framework: White men are evil
Hong Kong national security law: 53 former opposition lawmakers, activists arrested; authorities accuse them of plot to ‘overthrow’ government | South China Morning Post - ""These arrests demonstrate that the Hong Kong and Chinese authorities deliberately misled the world about the true purpose of the national security law, which is being used to crush dissent and opposing political views"... Ronny Tong Ka-wah, an adviser to the chief executive in her de facto cabinet, the Executive Council, said he regarded vetoing budgets as “normal behaviour” and simply organising a telephone poll should not constitute a breach of the national security law... Chung Kim-wah, deputy chief executive officer of the Hong Kong Public Opinion Research Institute, an independent pollster commissioned by the opposition camp to design the voting system, accused police of trying to create “white terror”.“If a country is so fragile that holding a primary can be regarded as subverting state power, the country itself needs to reflect,” he said, adding that personal data of all voters had been destroyed days after the primary."
1,200 per cent rally in Next Digital puts Apple Daily’s publisher among Hong Kong’s biggest media groups, sparks calls for regulatory probe | South China Morning Post - "Next Digital, whose founder was arrested yesterday in Hong Kong under the national security law, was the third-most traded stock in the city as traders answered a rallying cry on social media to snap up his shares, a move that provoked calls for the securities regulator to investigate... Business was also booming at Cafe Seasons, a local cha chaan teng-style cafeteria that operates on cash terms in Central, reportedly run by Lai’s second son"
A record flight of capital — $43.6 billion — from Hong Kong to Canada as China cracks down - " As China imposed a sweeping national security law in Hong Kong last year after massive protests, residents of the city moved tens of billions of dollars across the globe to Canada, where thousands are hoping to forge a new future.Capital flows out of Hong Kong banks reaching Canada rose to their highest levels on record last year, with about C$43.6 billion ($34.8 billion) in electronic funds transfers (EFT) recorded by FINTRAC, Canada’s anti-money laundering agency, which receives reports on transfers above C$10,000... The Hong Kong government has said the city has not seen significant capital outflows since the anti-government unrest first began in 2019, when a now-shelved bill that would have allowed extraditions to mainland China was proposed.The record transfers, up 46% from 2016 and up 10% from 2019, came in a year when Hong Kong police froze the accounts of several people linked to pro-democracy protests, triggering concern among some residents about asset safety... Reuters interviewed a dozen immigration consultants, lawyers, and real estate brokers who provided a window into how many Hong Kong residents are eager to start a new life in Canada and bring with them millions of dollars, once pandemic-induced travel restrictions end.Canadian visa applications from Hong Kong, excluding visitors’ visas, rose 10% to 8,121 in 2020, indicating further capital flows from the city are likely. Britain and Australia are expected to be other favored destinations for Hong Kong residents. Andrew Lo, chief executive of immigration consultancy Anlex in Hong Kong, is looking to expand into wealth management services in Canada, which he believes will be “a booming market for new immigrants, especially from Hong Kong.”Lo said he helped around 36 families emigrate to Canada in the past 12 months, each bringing C$1.5 million on average... Some of the money coming into Canada is likely to flow into real estate, property consultants said... many of his clients, most of whom are Hong Kong residents with Canadian passports, have accelerated timelines for returning to Canada to around five years on average, from around eight years previously."
Poor tycoons who have been brainwashed by CIA propaganda and don't know Hong Kong is safe and so is their money!
Hong Kong gov't ousts four democratically-elected lawmakers from legislature - "The lawmakers who lost their seats included Civic Party leader Alvin Yeung, party members Dennis Kwok and Kwok Ka-ki, as well as Kenneth Leung from the accountancy constituency."
Nuns arrested as Beijing turns up heat on Church in Hong Kong
Google-Facebook ditch plans to dock giant data cable in Hong Kong - "Plans for an underwater data cable between Los Angeles and Hong Kong have been dropped after the US government expressed fears that China could steal data from it."
With Hacks and Cameras, Beijing’s Electronic Dragnet Closes on Hong Kong - The New York Times - "Emboldened by that new law, Hong Kong security forces are turning to harsher tactics as they close a digital dragnet on activists, pro-democracy politicians and media leaders. Their approaches — which in the past month have included installing a camera outside the home of a prominent politician and breaking into the Facebook account of another — bear marked similarities to those long used by the fearsome domestic security forces in mainland China... Major internet companies like Facebook and Twitter have temporarily cut off data sharing with the local police. Others have gone further, devising more permanent solutions. In July, Yahoo changed its terms of service so that users in Hong Kong are protected under American law, not local rules. It also cut access for employees in Hong Kong to user data to protect them from the law... Hours after the media mogul Jimmy Lai was arrested, an employee at his company, Next Digital, received a message from someone posing as a part of tech support. Using the names of his employees, the message asked for login details to Mr. Lai’s Twitter account in order to set up a new iPhone for Mr. Lai. Schooled from years of cyberattacks, the recipient of the message flagged it as suspicious. Mark Simon, an executive at Next Digital, said the company believed it was an attempt by the Hong Kong police to get the login information for Mr. Lai’s account. The tactic has added to a new level of paranoia that has made day-to-day operations more difficult... Calling new police tactics “more aggressive,” Mr. Simon said it had become difficult for Mr. Lai to hold on to a phone because of the spate of arrests. “I think they have four of his phones now,” he said. “They take his phone every damn time. Teenage rock stars throwing fits don’t go through as many phones as Jimmy does, thanks to the Hong Kong police.” Mr. Simon added that people in Hong Kong were quickly adapting to the new information security environment. With the police now able to tap phones without a warrant, many citizens have switched entirely to encrypted chat apps. Many, he said, go further, setting the apps to auto-delete messages and even eschewing taking paper notes in meetings."
Unused Shots Pile Up as Mistrust Mars Hong Kong Vaccinations - Bloomberg - "Hong Kong has faced skepticism from the start, fueled by a breakdown of communication between the unpopular, unelected government and population... What makes the dynamic harder to resolve in Hong Kong is a deeper well of mistrust stemming from unprecedented street protests in 2019 as well as a subsequent crackdown by Beijing and local authorities that has eroded key political freedoms. With political distrust permeating through every sphere of Hong Kong life, some see a refusal to heed government calls to take the vaccine as a form of resistance -- particularly as Covid-19 restrictions and the national security law means forms of dissent have mostly been snuffed out... a government adviser suggested the Hong Kong atmosphere of distrust limits their policy options. “Since the trust level is not high, so we can’t push it like mainland China or elsewhere, so we must do it in a voluntary basis and every individual must decide for themselves,” said Lam Ching Choi, a doctor and adviser to Hong Kong’s leader"
How odd. China shills assure us that most Hong Kongers trust the government and it's only a small, unrepresentative minority that's protesting
Hong Kong exodus tilts real estate agencies to emigration services - Nikkei Asia - "As Hong Kong residents move overseas to escape China's political crackdown, real estate companies see new opportunities in areas such as assisting with visa applications and brokering property transactions. Interest in leaving Hong Kong is the highest since the lead-up to the former British colony's 1997 return to China, said Andrew Lo, a local emigration consultant who has worked in the industry for over three decades... With the city unveiling education guidelines in February that include teaching "national security" to schoolchildren, parents of young kids are particularly eager to leave... Interest in purchasing overseas properties surged 50% to 100% over the past two years, according to Midland. Real estate investment has been a popular way among Hong Kongers to attain residency elsewhere... Nations beyond the U.K. and Canada are gaining interest. Irish immigration consultancy Bartra Wealth Advisors opened a Hong Kong office in August 2019, during the height of the protests. The company believed that Hong Kongers' interest in Ireland, an English-speaking member of the European Union, would grow following Brexit."
Hong Kong population declines for first time since 2003 - Nikkei Asia - "Hong Kong recorded a decline in its population last year for the first time in 17 years, as the city logged more deaths than births due to the coronavirus pandemic, a persistently low birthrate and an increase in emigration in light of a new national security law."
Hong Kong: the dismantling of democracy - "With no pan-democratic camp in the Legislative Council – Hong Kong’s equivalent of parliament – since last November, the authorities are free to discuss restricting speech under the guise of a ‘fake news’ law. That’s not all. Hongkongers may soon be forced to register their names when buying pay-as-you-go sim cards... Lai seems to be being used as a test case for how far the NSL can be pushed. Apple Daily has the biggest circulation of any Hong Kong publication, but advertising revenues have shrunk. Police have used the trumped-up pretext of an irregularity in his office-leasing arrangements to raid the newspaper and intimidate his journalists. Strangely, when a leading police officer was found to have a similarly unorthodox leasing arrangement, nothing happened to him... It is not just activists who are feeling the wrath of the state. Children are also now to receive national education in an attempt to induce patriotic feelings. This is not just replacing the secondary school subject, liberal studies (a mix of sociology and media studies). It will also be extended into many other subjects including geography and even biology. Primary students will even have to learn about the implications of the NSL. Remember, these are six-year-olds. From calls to reorganise the legislature to an even more restrictive process for selecting the territory’s chief executive, the dismantling of Hong Kong’s democracy continues apace. It has hit students’ unions, and the territory’s ranking in a global democracy index has slumped to 87th in the world. It has even been reclassified from a ‘flawed democracy’ to a ‘hybrid regime’."
Where is the solidarity with Hong Kong? - " You might think, as an Asian democracy breathes its last breath, that the ‘anti-fascist’ ideologues of our Western woke brigade would have something to say. Perhaps, while an authoritarian regime with a disgraceful human-rights record tramples on a free people, there might be a march down Whitehall to demand international condemnation of China? Or maybe, in solidarity with these newly oppressed millions, we might close a few bridges in London by lying down on them, Extinction Rebellion-style? Hong Kong is a long way away, granted. But then, so is Minneapolis. Yes, Minneapolis, where the killing of George Floyd last month spawned transatlantic Black Lives Matter protests that have dominated the cultural conversation in the ensuing weeks. Let’s just remind ourselves of some of the themes that have characterised those protests: injustice, resistance to systemic oppression, solidarity against police brutality and anti-fascism. Perhaps the most memorable mantra of the movement has been: ‘Silence is violence.’ Silence, indeed... Western activists have spent the past few weeks tearing down statues of long-dead historical figures, daubing the word ‘racist’ on plinths and painting slogans on to roads so that they can be seen from space. These actions all have one thing in common: they are insta-worthy. They get retweeted. The dopamine-hit engineered by Silicon Valley quite literally drives the outrage and excitement. And when viewed through that lens, so to speak, the choice of smartphone-captured subject matter makes sense. Teargas in Seattle goes viral, but water cannons in Hong Kong do not. As for justice, where’s the fun in yelling about Xi Jingping? You can’t shame him. You can’t get him fired. You can’t cancel him. Far better to marshal the online mob to ruin the life of someone here who made a stupid comment. Easy scalps always have been the target of bullies and the unprincipled... Being seen to take the side of ‘victims’ here is both socially rewarding and requires minimal effort. It is much harder to take the fight to a truly authoritarian state where virtue-signalling falls on deaf ears. Of course, black lives matter. The slogan is so compelling because there is no escaping its ultimate truth. However, if we are to believe that it springs from protesters’ genuine belief in the universal equality of mankind and justice for the oppressed, then Hong Kong’s plight now demands a placard too. Or at least a tweet."
Hong Kong Is a Colony Once More - The Atlantic - "Twenty-three years ago today, Tung Chee-hwa, Hong Kong’s first chief executive, marked the territory’s return to Chinese rule by outlining the challenges ahead, but also with the promise of a more prosperous future for residents. Free from more than 150 years of colonial rule, “for the first time in history,” Tung said, “we, the people of Hong Kong, will be master of our own destiny.” Yet in one of the most crucial moments in the city’s history, its leader was unaware of the contents of a far-reaching piece of legislation. She was shut out of the decision making, and incapable of answering any questions about the law. Her officials were also sidelined in the lawmaking process, and Hong Kongers’ concerns were ignored. With the adoption of this national-security law, it is a return to history for the territory: Colonized by the British, briefly and brutally occupied by the Japanese, never fully its own, once again overlords in a distant capital are making decisions on Hong Kong’s behalf. It could not be more clear how hollow Tung’s words now ring... The national-security law is in some ways even more troubling than reforms from prior decades, in that at least Britain would offer some measure of consultation with the city’s residents before announcing such significant changes, according to Steve Tsang, the director of the China Institute at London’s School of Oriental and African Studies and the author of several history books on Hong Kong. This latest law is instead “a bloodless version” of China’s 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre, he told me. “People tend to focus on the killing [at Tiananmen], but the killing was an instrument,” Tsang said. “The objective was to intimidate and terrify the people so that people don’t even think about [protesting] again.” The goal now, Tsang added, is avoiding a repeat of 2019’s prodemocracy protests, which saw millions demonstrate for universal suffrage, along with other demands... News of the first arrest came as Lam and two of her deputies told members of the media that the law would be used only in rare cases. After her news conference yesterday, Lam told the United Nations Human Rights Council that the law would “not affect legitimate rights and freedoms,” including the right to protest... “The scope of the law exceeds the wildest of expectations. Essentially, Beijing now has unbridled powers in Hong Kong”... Lee Morgenbesser, a senior lecturer who studies authoritarian regimes at Griffith University’s School of Government and International Relations in Australia, says it is “difficult to recall a law imposed by any authoritarian regime in recent memory that is so unambiguously draconian.”... One of the law’s most jarring articles states that it would apply to any person who commits offenses under the legislation, even if they are outside Hong Kong and aren’t a permanent resident of the territory. “Remarkably, this provision gives the law an even broader reach than mainland criminal law,” Donald Clarke, a specialist in Chinese law at George Washington University, wrote in his analysis of the legislation. “If you’ve ever said anything that might offend the PRC [People’s Republic of China] or Hong Kong authorities, stay out of Hong Kong.”"
Hong Kong Protests: In Seizing Control, China Sidelines its Allies - The New York Times - "China’s Communist Party has long pursued its agenda in Hong Kong by working through loyalists among the city’s top officials, lawmakers and tycoons. That behind-the-scenes approach was a key feature in preserving considerable autonomy for the territory. Now, as the party prepares to grab more power in Hong Kong after months of sometimes violent unrest last year, it has pushed aside even its own allies in the city. The party’s strategy sends a clear message to Hong Kong: In quashing challenges to its authority, Beijing won’t hesitate to upend the delicate political balance at the core of the city’s identity... The sidelining of Hong Kong’s elite is the latest sign that in his pursuit for power, China’s top leader, Xi Jinping, is willing to defy political norms established over decades, and will do so swiftly and secretively... Establishment figures now find themselves in the awkward position of having to defend a law they have not seen in detail, amid growing pressure from Beijing to demonstrate loyalty. “I am also disappointed that we can’t see the bill,” Elsie Leung, a stalwart Beijing ally and former secretary for justice, told reporters, in a rare admission. She said, though, that she believed that Beijing had heard different views about the law... Mrs. Lam, the city’s leader, has sought to allay the public’s concerns, saying this week that Beijing had pledged to preserve the city’s civil liberties. But she acknowledged not having seen the specifics of the legislation. Tanya Chan, a pro-democracy lawmaker, said Beijing had undercut the city government’s credibility. “How could we believe you?” she said in an interview. “The entire law is to be imposed on Hong Kong, but the government is willing to be a propaganda machine without having seen the clauses,” Ms. Chan said. “Not only did they not help citizens fight for the right to know, they were blinded themselves.”... The Chinese government crafted the national security plan this spring with such stealth to prevent the city’s tycoons and professionals from lobbying against it."
Hong Kong removes 'sensitive' content from school textbooks - "Hong Kong publishers have been told to remove "sensitive" content from secondary school textbooks... Discussions on civil disobedience, photos of certain protest slogans and even the names of some political parties have been excised from books used to teach critical thinking to the city's teenagers... Hong Kong's government said the edits would help students "develop positive values". It denied any political censorship."
