Just to get this out of the way: The Red Chinese government in Beijing isn't the government of all Chinese. Just because it calls itself the People's Republic of China doesn't make it so. It's not the people's, it isn't a republic, and it doesn't rule all Chinese. In fact, there's a whole democracy on an island named Taiwan that governs the free Chinese. And have since the Luces--Henry and Clare Booth--were casting about for somebody to blame for "losing" the mainland.
There's another lil' ol' city you might have heard of--Hong Kong--that was under British control even after the British stopped controlling things. It wasn't 1947, but 1997, when the UK and mainland China signed the agreement giving Hong Kong autonomy for 50 years. Hong Kong was supposed to run itself--outside diplomacy and defense--until 2047, when the city would once again be ruled by Beijing.
However, the Red Chinese have always thought of Hong Kong as their own. They think of Taipei in the same way. And even parts of the Pacific Ocean. Which is why the blue-water Navy of the United States has to explain things every so often.
Hong Kong was supposed to have a "special status" for another 27 years. But that was before Xi Jinping took control of The Party and the reins. The boss of the ChiComs may think the world is too preoccupied by the covid-19 virus to pay much attention to Hong Kong. Those living in Hong Kong, however, seem to be paying close attention.
Last year, many thousands of residents of Hong Kong took to the streets, even broke into the Legislature, to protest a bill that would have made it easier for Beijing to arrest residents of the city. The new bill would have given Big Brother, or maybe Big Xi, more powers, although masked in a bureaucratic title sure to mislead. All in the name of security, of course. It would not be accurate to say that the eyes of the world were on the city at the time, but only because Beijing doesn't allow its vast population to see unfiltered news, or even certain news websites. It's a good bet that most folks on mainland China never heard of the protests at all. But enough of the world was focused that the Chinese government stood down and the proposed law remained only proposed.
Then came covid-19. And for safety's sake, protests were called off in the name of social distancing. Which gave authorities the chance.
Last week, dispatches said the ChiComs were planning to impose a national security law in Hong Kong by fiat criminalizing "foreign interference" and subversive activities. We assume that the "foreign interference" targeted by Beijing isn't the kind practiced by Beijing.
The apparatchiks in The Party say there is nothing to see here. State media in China--is there another kind?--said the county "will continue to support the improvement of the implementation of the system and mechanisms of the constitution and Basic Law." And assured everyone of its one country/two systems culture.
Hong Kong phooey. More likely the Chinese bosses want to get a head start on taking over the city before 2047, because the protests last year scared them. The authorities aren't used to having their orders questioned.
Officially, the bosses in Beijing have blamed foreign influence on last year's protests--not the proposed law making it easier for them to arrest citizens of Hong Kong. That is an argument that would be familiar to Americans in these latitudes. It wasn't all that long ago that folks blamed "outside agitators" when their neighbors and fellow Americans took to the streets to demand their civil rights. It's always outside agitators. Until you notice all the locals marching in the streets.
NPR reported last week that the new law, and the debate before its certain approval, will almost certainly mean more protests in Hong Kong. Covid-19 or no covid-19. And organizers are sure to call for more action.
Maybe they know that the ChiComs aren't likely to let a crisis go to waste. They might also know that there are different kinds of danger. And different kinds of safety.
Some of us thought that it would be at least another quarter-century before the world had this conversation. But President Xi has his own schedule. And it must be met.
Editorial on 05/26/2020