LettersHong Kong national security law: when people can’t trust their own government, they seek outside help

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A protester holds up a British National (Overseas) passport and a colonial-themed accessory during a demonstration in a Hong Kong shopping mall against China’s national security legislation for the city, on May 29. Photo: AP

Published: 8:00am, 4 Jun 2020Updated: 10:42pm, 4 Jun 2020

For all the talk over whether the new national security law for Hong Kong is constitutional, if it erodes the basis of the “one country, two systems” approach, or that it will have no impact on people’s lives, much of the pro- and anti-Beijing rhetoric has failed to address three basic questions:

Does this law have popular support?
Is there an institutional mechanism for people’s voices to be reflected in government policy?
Do most Hong Kong people trust the Hong Kong government?

There is one last question that also needs to be answered:

Does the Chinese government care about any of the above considerations?

In my opinion, the answer to all of these is a resounding “no”.

Government reassurances around the security law fall on deaf ears if nobody trusts them. As any management consultant or C-suite executive will tell you, before embarking on an ambitious project, you need buy-in from all levels to get projects approved.

And when people’s voices are marginalised, when they do not trust their own government, and see no viable path for their voices to be heard, is it any wonder some turn to foreign governments that you appear to share closer values with than your own untrustworthy government?

Branton Li, London

Chinese understand that the government knows best

The national security law for Hong Kong is a wake-up call. Authoritarian governments are never well-loved but, in a way, they are more efficient, such as during a pandemic. I truly believe China has the support of its citizens to make tough decisions on their behalf, whereas liberal democracies such as the US are spending too much time arguing and being divisive.