Democracy rules - well, in debate at least
There was a spirited debate on democracy on Wednesday evening. It didn't occur in government circles of course - where they are all heartily sick of the subject. This one was organised by Intelligence Squared and addressed the topic 'The World Needs Less Democracy Not More'. The motion was trounced, helped by a fine performance by The Times of London columnist David Aaronovitch who proved to be the night's star speaker. As it is customary with Intelligence Squared debates, the audience was polled before the debate with 36 per cent in favour of the debate's contention and 42 per cent against. The gap widened during the course of the debate with 24 per cent ending up favouring the motion with 72 per cent against. Speaking in favour of the motion, BBC correspondent Humphrey Hawksley initially struck an uncertain note, saying that he believed that while Hong Kong could certainly benefit from more democracy, other far-flung regions like the Middle East perhaps would not. Interestingly, in the questions that followed, the debate became polarised between the US on the one hand, as an example of a functioning democracy, and China, in which there is a distinct lack of it.
Deutsche Bank, as the main sponsor of the event, had invited various luminaries from the finance industry, but despite the lively questions from the floor, none of them entered the fray. Clearly they didn't see much in the way of added value to be gained from participating in that debate, particularly if they hoped to do business in China.
Earlier in the day, over a pre-debate lunch, Professor Pan Wei from the Centre for Chinese and Global Affairs at Peking University, who seconded the motion, denied in conversation that Beijing had clamped down on mainland reporting of the unrest in Egypt. However anyone who tries searching the word 'Egypt' on Sina Weibo, the local Twitter-like application, is greeted with a legal warning and no information. Also, during lunch, the moderator of the debate, Pan Xiaoli, a TV hostess with the Shanghai Media Group, gave an interesting take on the Chinese view of events in Egypt. This was along the lines of 'What a pity all the museums are closed'. and 'What a mess, we wouldn't want that sort of chaos in China'. It's true that democracy can get messy. But strangely you never see people, even on the mainland, protesting in favour of less democracy, or demanding a return to authoritarian rule. Protests always seem to be for more freedom and democracy and less authoritarianism. How can that be?
Gold-plated sector
Much as stockbroker CLSA likes the limelight, even their man at yesterday's media briefing on the luxury goods sector in China and Hong Kong was surprised at the crowd that turned up. Maybe it was the low key title of CLSA's report on the subject, 'Dipped in Gold: Luxury lifestyles in China and Hong Kong'. Aaron Fischer, regional head of consumer and gaming research, said China and Hong Kong were poised to see stellar growth in this sector in the coming decade. There were a few laughs to be had with Fischer noting that millionaires tended to be younger than in the West at an average age of 39. Fischer felt that at 37 he had a couple of years to make it, though we were shocked that he wasn't one already. All those bonuses ... A lot of guys in the industry have their eye on retirement at that age.
