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After a 13-year transition period, Hong Kong was finally handed to China on July 1. The billions of dollars spent on official and semi-official celebrations could not hide the fact that there was no sense of euphoria. Many people just accepted the takeover with a deep sense of resignation.

 One opinion poll found that less than half of the respondents were proud to be Chinese citizens. Another found that outgoing governor Chris Patten was more popular than the Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa.

  Needless to say, Chinese leaders would find such heretical views outrageous as well as unacceptable. But the question is, are they aware of the Hong Kong people's ambivalence?   Studies also showed that women and young people are more sceptical about the change-over. They do not trust China and are apprehensive about the future.

  A handover hotline for students set up by the Catholic Church found that 60 per cent of the callers were opposed to unification with China.

 The students complained about getting poor marks in their essays because they objected to Chinese rule.

 Students who sang the praise of unification got full marks. Some callers accused school authorities of twisting the results of opinion polls from anti-unification to pro-unification.

  This is very alarming. If Hong Kong people are prepared to distort the truth in order to make it acceptable to Beijing, then the community has no future.

 It would be unfortunate and dangerous to assume that Hong Kong people have no qualms about the handover.

 The high profile entry of the People's Liberation Army at the crack of dawn on July 1 showed little sensitivity for local feelings. In addition to being a symbol of sovereignty, the PLA served to remind everyone that the new master has arrived.

 Until now, Hong Kong has not been told how many troops will ultimately be deployed. Watching the troops' inexorable progress on television, I cannot help but ask: who are they here to defend?  Last month Mr Tung told a news conference that something like the massacre in Beijing on June 4, 1989, could not take place in Hong Kong because he would not allow it.

 If we cast our mind back to 1989, we will recall that even the then general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, Zhao Ziyang, could not stop the massacre.

 Is it possible that Mr Tung is more powerful than Mr Zhao? Since the Hong Kong handover has captured the world's imagination, some democratic countries have spoken out in support of the local people's demand for freedom and democracy.

 These foreign governments did not support Beijing's decision to appoint a provisional legislature to replace the Legislative Council and have publicly voiced their reservations.

 Yet they sent representatives to witness its inauguration on July 1. The presence of these foreign ministers and diplomats signified endorsement of the Provisional Legislative Council.

 When political leaders claim they support freedom and democracy but fail to back up their statements with actions, they invite contempt. Thus it is not a question of Hong Kong being let down but these leaders exposing their hypocrisy and inconsistency.

 This year is not only a challenge for Hong Kong, it is also a challenge for humanity. It shows up the ugly side of human nature - greed, duplicity, hypocrisy and malice.

  However, we have also been inundated with messages of concern and support from abroad.

 Friends of Hong Kong can rest assured that the freedom fighters here will not let the side down.



Promise to fight for our freedom