HONG...3
Prof Harris doubts it will change much: "We're going to go into the mid-
90s with a few directly-elected people, but a great group of people whose chief
claim to fame will be that they please the administration.
Behind all the debate is the great unspoken fear of Beijing. Asked what
worries them about 1997, Hong Kong Chinese are often vague and unspecific.
Concerned mainly with getting on in life, they express a general unease at the prospects of communist rule.
A poll for the South China Morning Post put their feelings into words:
"Locals believe Hong Kong's future will be safeguarded not by fancy words or promises, but by who is in power in China after 1997."
The bulk of Chinese in Hong Kong came here to get away from the mainland. They look at the wild swings in policy that have marked communist rule and wonder
which direction the next one will take.
A decade of reform efforts in Beijing have produced growing discontent, and
an economy ravaged by inflation and undermined by rampant corruption. Beijing
promises Hong Kong will be treated differently, but people in the territory look to
Tibet and judge the assurances accordingly.
During recent anti-Chinese riots in Lhasa, Tibet's capital, it was pointed out that similar pledges to those offered Hong Kong had been made 30 years ago to
the Tibetans. Two weeks after the imposition of martial law in Lhasa, a Hong Kong
delegation carrying a petition to Beijing pressing for the release of political
prisoners was stopped at customs, the petition was seized and one member was refused entry.
G
What the British MPs may find most striking and which might raise a blush
even at No 10 is how little Hong Kong expects from Britain. Lack of debate may
mirror their pragmatic judgement that Britain has become a secondary player. While
the flags and bureaucrats remain in place, China is dictating the rules.
The Chinese in Hong Kong see no point in arguing over the future, says Prof
Harris. Instead, those who can simply emigrate - 45,000 did so last year, and an
estimated 40-60,000 a year are expected to follow over the next decade.
And even in this, Britain has let many of them down. While Australia,
Canada and United States raise their quotas and advertise for migrants, Foreign and
Commonwealth Secretary Sir Geoffrey Howe made clear to recent hearings on Hong Kong
that its Chinese were not welcome in Britain. Past practice, he said, was against
it.
GEMINI NEWS
About the Author: KELLY MCPARLAND is a sub-editor with the Hong Kong
Standard. He formerly worked as assistant editor with Gemini News Service, and with
the Toronto Star.
GN 33146
Copyright: News-Scan International Ltd (1989)
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