Mass arrests point to Hong Kong’s quickening transition to a second-tier Chinese city

Hong Kong officials deny there is any erosion of promised rights and contend their actions are not political. But their fighting words are those of a government intent on breaking from the wider world

Peter Kammerer

Published: 6:45am, 12 Jan 2021

Why you can trust SCMP

From here on the lower decks, Hong Kong is obviously a sinking ship. The mass arrest – and then release without charge – of democracy-supporting citizens last week is just the latest sign that the city’s days as a great place are numbered.

Government dismissal of foreign criticism of its actions tells me the authorities do not understand what is required of a respected member of the global community. Even as people flee to freer countries, companies downsize or relocate, and international indexes show a decline, the government denies that anything is wrong.

Foreign governments and monitoring groups, like most Hongkongers, know that what is going on in the name of protecting China’s safety is not normal.

Since Beijing’s national security law was introduced on June 30, the number of arrests on allegations of subversion has mounted to the dozens, having risen dramatically last Wednesday with the detention of 53 political figures and activists for their involvement in a pro-democracy camp primary to choose candidates for an election to the main legislature that was subsequently postponed.

Their alleged crime? According to the authorities, they had intended to “seize the ruling power” of Hong Kong.

03:04

Mass arrests of Hong Kong opposition lawmakers, activists under national security law

If winning seats in a freely held election so that the people who voted for successful candidates can get a greater say in the running of their city is subversion, my understanding of the democracy promised to Hong Kong is deeply flawed.

I’m not the only one, as the barrage of overseas criticism of the arrests shows. A European Union spokesman said they sent a “signal that political pluralism is no longer tolerated in Hong Kong”; US President-elect Joe Biden’s choice for secretary of state, Antony Blinken, called them an “assault on those bravely advocating for universal rights”; and British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said they were a grievous attack on rights Beijing had agreed to uphold when resuming sovereignty of Hong Kong in 1997.

After mainland China, the EU and the US are Hong Kong’s biggest trading partners. Foreign businesses in the city, through the location of their Asian headquarters and offices, their employment of local staff and their investment, are an important factor in Hong Kong’s claim to be a “world city”.

But that term also means abiding by internationally recognised rules and standards. Hong Kong officials deny that there is any erosion of promised rights and contend their actions are not political but are about upholding laws.

“We will not be intimidated by threats of sanctions by overseas governments; nor will we shy away from condemning foreign or external forces that have flagrantly interfered in Hong Kong‘s affairs,” a statement ended.

01:24

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam says she gets around sanctions by collecting her salary in cash

These are not the words of friends or partners but of a government intent on breaking from the wider world. That has been going on for some time if the city’s slide down annual global rankings is any guide.

In the latest rankings of world cities by Bestcities.org, Hong Kong plunged from 19th to 42nd, with a report noting that it was hard to imagine why a foreigner would want to “visit a city where they could very easily be detained for wearing the wrong shirt”. In Reporters Without Borders’ World Press Freedom Index, Hong Kong fell from 73rd in 2019 to 80th last year.

Before the national security law was introduced, I still had hope for the city. But in the wake of mass arrests, often on what appear to be spurious grounds, the rabid hubris of officials here and in Beijing, and the lack of awareness of the importance of diplomatic language, I am fast rethinking my position.

I’m starting to agree with a belief that we’re fast sliding and becoming a second-tier city alongside the likes of Wuhan and Hangzhou. The death knell will be sounded if any attempt is made to shut out or censor internet giants like Google, Facebook and YouTube.

We now know the national security law is less about subversion than preventing criticism of the authorities. In other words, democracy is now a dirty word.

Peter Kammerer is a senior writer at the Post

152