Thousands in Hong Kong attended the annual vigil today memorializing the 31st anniversary of the Tiananmen Square crackdown. Prior to the vigil, the police had announced a ban on public gatherings due to COVID-19, but in the end they did not enforce that ban.
China's official response to Tiananmen has evolved over the years. What began as the Communist Party framing of the event as a success of government leadership eventually gave way to collective amnesia that involved the complicity of the entire nation. This year, the one place that has always remembered — Hong Kong — may soon forget, too.
SupChina spoke with Alicia García Herrero, chief economist for the Asia-Pacific at French investment bank Natixis and an adjunct professor at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, about Hong Kong.
How would the revocation of Hong Kong’s special status impact the special administrative region? SupChina lays out the key issues at stake.
Being a centrist in Hong Kong can be a lonely proposition, as our writer well knows. “Upholding and respecting the liberal political cultures and values of the city would benefit Beijing and Hong Kong alike,” Brian Wong writes, “though it pains me to see the futility of this pitch playing out before my eyes.”
President Trump’s press conference on Friday focused entirely on China. The U.S. President used sweeping rhetoric to announce measures punishing Beijing, but his announcements were not specific, and few would take place immediately.
China is experiencing its worst economic slowdown in decades with tens of millions of people unemployed and a demand slump around the world dampening chances for a quick recovery. Premier Li Keqiang nonetheless sounded an upbeat message on the sidelines of the National People's Congress.
After a long year of anti-Beijing protests and legal limbo, Beijing looks set to strengthen it's control of Hong Kong once and for all.
As the fate of Hong Kong's autonomy looks increasingly bleak, Hong Kong citizens and foreign governments around the world consider their options for a response to Beijing.