My Take | Revamping the central government’s liaison office
- Hong Kong has forced itself into the heart of China’s domestic and foreign policy
For almost two decades, Beijing had hoped Hong Kong would run itself on the model of the old colonial administration, with a bit more democratic reform thrown in than what the British had allowed. That has turned out to be an illusion. Piecemeal electoral reform was not enough for many Hong Kong people; they want it all the way.
Hong Kong has turned out to be extremely high maintenance. Neither the locals nor their government have worked out under “one country, two systems” as envisioned by Beijing. Now, all the reform progress has to be rolled back under the new mantra: “Only patriotic Hong Kong people can rule Hong Kong.”
The central government has finally come to terms with this reality. That’s the context in which the liaison office in Hong Kong is being revamped and, in effect, upgraded. Correspondingly, the autonomy of the Hong Kong government has been gradually downgraded.
Under the new revamp, half of the liaison office personnel will be rotated out, with 100 new staff added to the headcount. Led by seasoned politician Luo Huining, many are experienced operatives in different policy areas; the focus, however, is not on their previous exposure or experience with Hong Kong affairs.
At the same time, Shi Kehui, Guangdong’s anti-corruption chief, has been moved to the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office (HKMAO) in Beijing.