For decades, Hong Kong Chinese have lived a paradox: they enjoy a free life in a colony administered by a foreign leadership with which they cannot identify, yet they are equally loathe to support the mainland Chinese leadership that will soon replace their British rulers. Another chapter of Hong Kong's history will begin in 1997, one that has unfortunate parallels with the past: Hong Kong is being offered to and fro by its owners, as if it were a gift for them to bestow, and the will of the people themselves is playing almost no role in the process.
Although they despair at Britain's betrayal, most Hong Kong Chinese have not denied Peking's claim that they are Chinese nationals. Indeed, this has always been tacitly accepted by Hong Kong's people and government, although they have seen Chinese nationality more in terms of ethnic than of political identity. Hong Kong Chinese are noted for their resilience, and it appears that most are resigned to accepting the Sino-British Joint Declaration of 1984—as long as their rice bowl is not broken. They have been able to survive and even nourish under foreign rule, so why worry so much about living under yet another government, especially one of the same race?
For the first few years after the signing of the Joint Declaration, people held great hopes for mainland China. They wanted mainland reforms to succeed, and they tried to be confident about the future despite Communist China's abominable record over the past four decades. One support for their optimism was Peking's distinct promise made in the Sino-British Joint Declaration regarding direct elections and the seemingly solid legal basis for the protection of fundamental rights and freedoms. But during the Basic Law drafting process, pessimism began to rise as earlier promises kept falling by the wayside.
The Rev. Louis Ha, a member of the Basic Law Consultative Committee (BLCC) and a spokesman for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Hong Kong, covered the subject in an article entitled "Human and Civil Rights?" (which appears in the book Basic Law, Basic Questions). He notes that the fundamental right to life, the freedom from torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, plus a number of other rights mentioned in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, were left out of the Basic Law.
Moreover, even though Article 18 of the Basic Law refers to an "independent judicial power," there are a number of restrictions on the powers and jurisdiction of the Hong Kong court system, putting its independence in jeopardy. The freedom of the press is also not fully protected. Although Article 26 of the Basic Law guarantees freedom of the press, there are no specifics to give this vague guarantee some practical meaning. It remains a weak point in the proposed Hong Kong system, as the support of a fully democratic political structure is no where promised in the draft.
Frank Ching, former Peking correspondent for American newspapers, says: "I think that Peking would try to abide by the terms of the Basic Law, or rather I should say that Peking will abide by its interpretation of the terms of the Basic Law. Some of the terms are vague and readily lend themselves to various interpretations. Peking can always pick the interpretation most convenient to itself and still continue to maintain that it is abiding by the Basic Law. I am sure that Peking intends to abide by the Basic Law and also wants Hong Kong to abide by it. But Peking is giving itself as much of a free hand as possible in interpreting the Basic Law."
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A century and a half of colonial rule and education has cultivated a deep-rooted apathy in Hong Kong people toward political matters. But this attitude has been shaken by a new awareness of the close connection between the freedom they enjoy now and the basic rights they have to fight for in order to enjoy these freedoms in the future. Their trust in Peking's pronouncements about respecting the guarantees of human rights and civil liberties has been severely damaged by the continuous now of promises backed by a lack of conviction and contrary action, such as the postponement of direct elections to the Legislative Council.
The people's last hopes were buried with the bodies of the Chinese pro-democracy demonstrators slaughtered in Peking. As Ching describes it: "Even before June 4th, there was a lot of mistrust of mainland China in Hong Kong, but I think that was obscured because people did not openly say it. Afterwards, people openly said that they didn't trust mainland China. Before June 4th, a lot of people were talking about getting a good Basic Law drafted, but now a lot of people are saying that even if a good Basic Law were drafted, they would still not trust mainland China. The distrust is much deeper now than before, and it also shows on the surface."
Many people have decided that it is prudent to be silent because they understand that it is unproductive to say anything when all the Chinese government does is to warn and threaten. That is why responses to the "solicitation of opinions" about the provisions of the Basic Law fell off drastically, and only about 7,000 letters were sent in by the public to express their opinions after June 4th. Instead, people's attention was generally focused on emigration, which is now a daily topic of conversation at every level of society. The result has been a serious brain drain problem buffeting an already shaken Hong Kong.
The Hong Kong government is trying every possible way to alleviate the brain drain problem. Governor Sir David Wilson, in his speech in October 1989 at the opening of the Legislative Council, outlined various plans for Hong Kong's future, such as a new airport, a rebuilt port, new schools, and a revitalized economy. These projects are geared to improve Hong Kong's infrastructure well beyond 1997. But will these tangible achievements help guarantee mainland China's respect for human rights and freedom in Hong Kong?
Ching says: "I think it is unfair to ask people to stay in Hong Kong or to ask business people to keep their investments in Hong Kong when you are not sure what will happen to them in the future. I think it's up to each individual to decide whether to stay or to leave. And it's up to each businessman to decide where to invest, in Hong Kong or overseas. Very often, we hear people say that 'Hong Kong people have confidence in themselves.' I think the statement is really meaningless because right now Hong Kong people are not in control of their own destiny. They are not the people in charge. Other people are in charge, principally the mainland Chinese leaders and to some extent the British government."
This kind of uncertainty and lack of control over the future are what have brought the brain drain problem to a head. Emerging out of this problem is the issue of the right of abode in Britain. Politicians and businessmen argue the importance of granting full British nationality to the more than three million Hong Kong-born citizens in order to provide security for their future and to help staunch the hemorrhage of educated people and professionals from Hong Kong. If appropriate measures are not carried out immediately, the scramble for foreign visas could reach crisis proportions in a few years.
Are Hong Kong people really eager to live in a foreign country with a different culture and language? The answer is no. Gathered together in Hong Kong are all the good places for shopping, for varied cuisine, and the excitement of a truly international city. In addition, the people already have a remarkably modern infrastructure, including the mass transit railway and cross-harbor tunnel. More importantly, Hong Kong people feel at home; they enjoy a feeling of social participation and belonging. Were it not for the uncertainty about their future after 1997 and their deep concern for the life of their children, Hong Kong Chinese would definitely prefer to stay behind than to go to any other place in the world. When it comes to moving to Britain, they feel an even greater disinterest because the prospects for the good life there are far dimmer than in Hong Kong, not to mention the difficulty of emigrating there. The shortlist choices of these would-be emigrants are Canada, Australia, and the U.S.
Residents enjoy a holiday at Repulse Bay. Hong Kong is more than an exciting, bustling place—it is home, and residents would rather stay.
According to an opinion poll conducted in Hong Kong by an independent institute before the June 4th incident, over half of the 1,700 professionals interviewed planned to emigrate because of their lack of confidence in the future. Of those interviewed, 58 percent of the doctors, 50 percent of the lawyers and managerial personnel, and 48 percent of the accountants said they intended to obtain a foreign passport. The institute estimates that after the Peking massacre, the proportion of professionals who want to immigrate may be as high as 71 percent.
Laborers account for a large proportion of the Hong Kong population, and they do not have the resources to emigrate. During the drafting of the Sino-British Joint Declaration, they showed little interest in the matter because they had the attitude that no matter who would become the ruler, they would be satisfied as long as they could still earn a living.
Lau Chin-shek, Director of the Hong Kong Christian Industrial Committee, says: "For some time now, especially after June 4th, these people have gradually come to understand the difference between the systems of the two places. They are learning that the communists will concern themselves with everything. For example, during the Cultural Revolution, they would even bother with trivialities such as why are you eating and what are you eating? The so-called reforms underway at present in fact amount to nothing but a little less interference in people's affairs. So now even laborers would leave if they had the chance." Lau adds that his committee wants to help the great mass of laborers who have to stay behind by teaching them as much as possible about labor affairs, including the meaning of the freedom to find a job.
The number of people able to emigrate depends largely on how much their education, skills, and experience meet the immigration requirements of other countries. For example, Gordon Seow, the Singapore Commissioner in Hong Kong, announced on July 10, 1989 that the island republic was offering residence to 25,000 manual and clerical Hong Kong workers and their families. In the case of Canada and Australia, however, the favored choices are mostly middle-class professionals and those who can afford to bring investment funds with them. But these are the sort of people Hong Kong needs most to maintain its position as an international financial and trading center.
Frank Ching has a different opinion concerning the brain drain problem: "If professionals leave, of course it will threaten the stability of Hong Kong. But the whole point of the right of abode is to make sure that they don't leave. It's to make them stay in Hong Kong, and the argument has always been that if people know that they can leave, they will stay on. If people think that they may be stuck in Hong Kong, then they'll try to leave. This is an argument that has been made and accepted by a lot of people in the British government. That's why they are in favor of offering emigration rights in order to help keep people in Hong Kong. They are offering this to people they consider vital to maintaining Hong Kong's economy. It's giving them an insurance policy so that they will stay."
Having grown up as a second generation Hong Kong resident, Ching has a deep love for the place. He recalls the day when he returned to Hong Kong in 1968 after eight years of study abroad: "When the plane was about to land, it looked like it was going to crash into the skyscrapers. But I didn't care if I died because I was back in Hong Kong. "
Now that the city is going to enter into another historical period, Ching voices an appropriate metaphor: "Hong Kong people are like passengers in a car. They don't trust the driver and they're afraid that the driver will get into an accident and get them all killed. But the passengers are constantly being told: 'You must have confidence in yourself.' That does absolutely no good because they have all the confidence in the world in themselves, they just don't have confidence in the driver. What they want to do is to change the driver so that they can drive the car themselves. I think that if Hong Kong people had the opportunity to determine their own future, they would have a lot of confidence in both themselves and their future."
1989
How is it that hearts are filled with despair and anguish has gripped this great land?
New hopes dissolve and the masses' expectations turn to ashes.
The bitterness of China!
But the democratic idea is not abandoned or forgotten.
The democracy movement is not ended, when the heart is firm, there'll be a way.
Human will slows but is not weakened, and the people's will surges onward.
Hearts beat together, hands clasped forever.
The title song from an album entitled "1989," produced by the Hong Kong singer/songwriter Lowell Lo (Lu Kuan-t'ing) to express the feelings of Hong Kong people about the democracy movement in mainland China. Lo's earlier hit, "For Freedom," was the unofficial anthem of the Hong Kong democracy movement in summer 1989 after the Tienanmen massacre.
(TRANSLATED BY MERISA LIN)