John Lee was appointed as the new regional director of Hong Kong. He is Hong Kong’s former security chief who previously worked as a police officer.
Yrjö Kokkonen,
Mikko Leppänen
In Hong Kong, China’s 25-year rule has been celebrated with carefully rehearsed festivities. Hong Kong came under China on July 1, 1997, after being a British colony before that.
The special administration area had very tight security measures. Chinese and Hong Kong flags and posters advertising a new era of stability were hung in various areas.
The Chinese president who visited Hong Kong Xi Jinping stated that the “one country, two systems” governance model in place in Hong Kong is working well and there is no need to change it.
– Hong Kong must not become chaotic again. Hong Kong’s development must not be delayed. All disturbances must be eliminated, Xi said in his speech, according to the Reuters news agency.
In reality, Hong Kong’s opposition has been defeated and people from the region are constantly moving elsewhere to escape China’s policies.
The new regional director is a former police officer
A new regional director was appointed for Hong Kong John Lee. He is Hong Kong’s former security chief who previously spent 35 years as a police officer.
The United States has placed Lee on the sanctions list because of his involvement in the implementation of the infamous security law. The US believes that China is using the security law to silence the opposition.
Xi said Lee’s administration will open a “new chapter” for Hong Kong. Lee’s attitude towards financial matters is a question mark for the time being.
Hong Kong is known as a multicultural business center, but the region’s economy and connections abroad have weakened due to China’s strict corona policy.
During his visit, Xi said China supports Hong Kong’s role as an international economic center.
“China has torn up the joint declaration”
Many countries have recently criticized China’s actions.
The last British governor of Hong Kong Chris Patten accuses China’s ruling Communist Party of breaking its promises to Hong Kong.
Patten told the AFP news agency last week that China has torn up the joint declaration and is trying to remove Hong Kong’s freedoms.
In his comment, Patten refers to the joint declaration on the Special Administrative Region that China and Britain agreed to before the handover in Hong Kong.
According to the ex-governor, China does not consider Hong Kong’s freedoms a threat to China’s security, but to the Communist Party’s ability to hold on to power.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Thursday that they will do everything possible to ensure that China sticks to its commitments.
The United States and Australia have also criticized China for eroding freedoms.
The Prime Minister of Taiwan Su Tseng-chang says that freedom and democracy have disappeared from Hong Kong.
China considers Taiwan its own territory and has offered it a similar one country, two systems model to Hong Kong. In Taiwan, the proposal has been widely rejected.