Advertisement
Advertisement
Hong Kong at 25
Get more with myNEWS
A personalised news feed of stories that matter to you
Learn more
Hong Kong’s incoming leader John Lee during an exclusive interview with the Post. Photo: Nora Tam

Exclusive | Incoming Hong Kong leader John Lee promises more aggressive approach to countering ‘fearmongering and badmouthing’ by city’s critics

  • Incoming chief executive will attend November’s Apec summit in Bangkok despite being under US sanctions
  • Lee also stresses need for incoming government to be ‘protective’ and ‘go on the offensive’ at the same time

Hong Kong leader-in-waiting John Lee Ka-chiu has promised to adopt a more aggressive approach to countering “fearmongering and badmouthing” by critics of the city, insisting that being sanctioned himself by the United States would not stop him from promoting the city overseas.

In an exclusive interview with the Post ahead of his swearing-in as chief executive on July 1, Lee revealed he would attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit in Bangkok this November for a start.

“This is a forum which the chief executive has been attending [in the past]. So it is an Apec activity … and we are a member, so I would be going,” he said, referring to the in-person Apec leader’s meeting scheduled this year. “That would be my goal.”

26:44

‘What needs to be done will be’: Hong Kong’s next leader John Lee | Talking Post with Yonden Lhatoo

‘What needs to be done will be’: Hong Kong’s next leader John Lee | Talking Post with Yonden Lhatoo

Founded in 1989, Apec operates on the basis of non-binding and consensus-based cooperation to discuss free trade and economic cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region. The practice of an annual leaders’ meeting was established in 1993 by then-US president Bill Clinton.

More than 20 economies, including Hong Kong, mainland China and the United States, are members of Apec, which accounts for about 60 per cent of the world’s total gross domestic product and about 50 per cent of global trade.

Leaders sit at a round table during the 2018 Apec summit in Papua New Guinea. Photo: EPA-EFE

It used to be normal practice for China’s president to meet Hong Kong’s chief executive on the sidelines of the annual Apec summits.

Lee’s predecessor, Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, last attended the 2018 Apec summit in Papua New Guinea. The one scheduled for the following year was cancelled because of social unrest in Chile, and the coronavirus pandemic prevented the annual sessions for the last two years.

00:34

Hong Kong’s incoming leader John Lee plans to attend next Apec summit

Hong Kong’s incoming leader John Lee plans to attend next Apec summit

The city’s newly minted leader said attending Apec would be just one step, while he would also send delegations overseas to “tell the true Hong Kong story”.

“Hong Kong as a whole has a lot of strengths and attractions … but we have to face one challenge, which is, there has been a lot of fearmongering and badmouthing political manoeuvres … about so-called erosion of freedoms and rights, which somehow paint the picture, which doesn’t reflect the actual situation in Hong Kong,” he said.

Incoming Hong Kong leader John Lee working on plan to reopen mainland border

His new administration would have to come up with ideas to build on Hong Kong’s existing strengths and make the city even more attractive to people from overseas, he said.

The former security chief stressed the need for his incoming government to be “protective” as well as to “go on the offensive” at the same time.

01:25

Too much ‘fearmongering’ about Hong Kong, says city’s next leader John Lee

Too much ‘fearmongering’ about Hong Kong, says city’s next leader John Lee

“[Being] protective is to ensure that in this complex geopolitical situation, we have sufficient readiness to take on challenges or risks that may happen all of a sudden, just in the same way as the threat to national security and to the whole of Hong Kong in 2019. We have to be very prepared, have a high safety margin, so that we can deal with it effectively,” he said.

“The second thing is, we have to [go on the] offensive … Go on and tell the people, tell them the opportunities. We are the third largest financial centre, we are [at the forefront] in a lot of rankings … competitiveness, the attractions and all the capabilities. We tell all these things to the world.”

Lee, a career policeman who went on to become a top bureaucrat before he was chosen for Hong Kong’s highest office, said he would be more proactive than defensive in his approach.

“We will fight it and counter it,” he said. “I think that there is this so-called belief that if you repeat a lie frequently enough it becomes the truth, that is their way of making propaganda. So we have to fight against it. We have to tell people, well, don’t fall into this trap.”

A quick guide to who’s who on incoming team of Hong Kong leader John Lee

Lee repeatedly underscored Hong Kong’s strengths as a financial and trade centre, as well as a regional hub for resolving legal disputes. His administration would also develop the city as a technology hub and an international cultural and arts exchange centre, he added.

He also suggested Hong Kong could leverage on the nation’s international clout by joining mainland-led delegations to other countries and international forums.

John Lee says his administration will develop Hong Kong as a technology hub and an international cultural and arts exchange centre. Photo: K. Y. Cheng

Lee, who is among 11 current and former mainland and Hong Kong officials sanctioned by Washington in 2020 over the Beijing-imposed national security law, shrugged off the restrictions he might face in travelling overseas.

“I’m not worried. There are a lot of places I can go to, only one hegemonic country has made this very unreasonable move,” he said.

“I think the world is large and there are a lot of places where we can develop our relationship and extend our influences and bring benefits to them and to ourselves … Besides, I can have a lot of other people go out and tell the true stories of Hong Kong. I am a believer and practitioner of teamwork.”

96