Maintaining a China identity
Hong Kong SAR chief executive-elect Leung Chun-ying takes over the
reins of government tomorrow and throws a challenge to the city to
really call China its home.
TOMORROW, the people of Hong Kong
and the mainland Chinese will celebrate the 15th anniversary of the
return of Hong Kong to China.
Days ahead of the momentous
celebration that will be attended by Chinese
President Hu Jintao and
featuring fireworks, military parade and parachute jumps,
Hong Kong
Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) chief executive-elect Leung
Chun-ying threw a challenge to the city to really call China its home.
During
an interview with the Chinese media late last month, Leung said that
since the handover in 1997, the city dwellers had developed a sense of
belonging with their motherland but it would take a little longer before
remnants of the British influence disappear entirely.
New
leader: Leung speaking to a group of low-income families at the rooftop
of an old residential building in Sham Shui Po District, Hong Kong, in
this file photo.
“There are two meanings of the
handover. First, Hong Kong was legally returned to China and the Chinese
government retained the administrative power of Hong Kong by
establishing the HKSAR and passing the Basic Law for the ‘one country,
two systems’ and ‘Hong Kong run by
Hong Kong people’ model,” the
People’s Daily quoted Leung.
“On the other hand, Hong Kong was under British control for 100 years. More needs to be done to rid that influence on people.”
For
instance, he said, some Hong Kong people would still say that they were
“leaving for China” instead of “going to the mainland”.
He cited
an example where a Hong Kong saleswoman told her friend on the mainland
that she had visited Beijing on her friend’s National Day, instead of
referring to the celebration as hers, too.
“These people may not
have any political stance when they speak that way. This is probably due
to decades of British rule. We will keep on educating our people so
that they can better understand the country. But we cannot rush it; it
has to be done step by step,” he said.
Leung will begin his
tenure as the new boss of the city for a five-year term starting
tomorrow, along with his government line-up of
Carrie Lam Cheng
Yuet-ngor, John Tsang and 18 others.
Besides working on better
interaction between Hong Kong and
mainland Chinese people, the new HKSAR
government has to tackle social problems such as the influx of
mainlanders which puts a strain on the city’s healthcare and housing
resources.
On the economy, Hong Kong will have to work around the
central government’s supporting policies to maintain its
competitiveness and improve its people’s livelihood.
In its editorial, the Hong Kong-based
Sing Pao
daily said the people of Hong Kong had mixed emotions and experienced
ups and downs in the last 15 years, but the city was heading in the
right direction under the “one country, two systems” policy.
“It
was unavoidable that we had to ‘cross the river by touching the stones’.
In the past 15 years, we have seen numerous conflict of opinions,
political hostility and delayed reforms. No matter how many protests and
demonstrations were staged, the majority of residents remain united in
steering this boat named Hong Kong forward,” it said.
Oriental Daily
hoped that Leung would “clean up the mess” left behind by his
predecessors Tung Chee-hwa and Donald Tsang, and, turn around the
economy and stabilise the social situation.
“During elections,
Leung Chun-ying pledged to introduce a financial development unit if he
was elected. Now he has walked the talk by setting up a committee headed
by executive council member Laura M. Cha to form the objectives,
functions and operations of the unit.
“Leung should invite
financial advisers and economics experts to give their input on how to
solidify Hong Kong’s status as the world financial centre and to counter
future financial crises. Let us see if the Leung administration can
lead Hong Kong on a new path of development,” the newspaper said.
Recently,
Beijing announced a package of supporting policies such as issuing
bourse-traded funds listed on both the Hong Kong and mainland stock
markets, encouraging foreign investors to use the yuan for trade
settlement in the city and easing restrictions on small businesses run
by Hong Kong residents in the mainland.
Peng Qinghua, director of the liaison office of the central government in HKSAR, told
China Daily
that Beijing had played a key role in maintaining Hong Kong’s
prosperity by keeping its promise of autonomy for the HKSAR government.
“The
economic achievement in Hong Kong today is the result of its people’s
ability to take the opportunities, and their flexibility and diligence.
However, it could not have happened without the support of its
motherland,” he said.
Peng hoped that the people from both sides
would continue to respect their differences, improve communications and
deepen cooperation in order to achieve real unity.
MADE IN CHINA By CHOW HOW BAN
hbchow@thestar.com.my
PLA gaining trust in HK
Shortly after being stationed in Hong Kong, Brigadier Zhang Jie said he was asked by a city official why were his soldiers "so invisible".
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Soldiers of People's liberation Army pose for photograghs at teh Stanley barracks in Hong Kong earlier this month. Edmong Tang/China Daily
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The People's Liberation Army troops had been at the garrison for a month, following the return of Hong Kong to China on July 1, 1997, and many residents expected them to have a high-profile presence.
"I told the official that the reason we were invisible was because we only leave the base when necessary, to not disturb residents," Zhang said ahead of the 15th anniversary of the handover.
This is a policy that stayed unchanged for 15 years.
The garrison, which has roughly 8,000 troops spread over battalions of infantry, engineers, airborne staff and navy personnel, is housed in several bases across the special administrative region.
Due to some differences between the mainland and Hong Kong, which the United Kingdom controlled for more than a century, and the "one country, two systems" policy, PLA troops stationed adhere to stricter rules than those in other parts of China.
"We have to be committed to strict discipline to gain the trust of Hong Kong citizens," said Zhang, who heads the garrison's infantry division.
Liang Yuejia, deputy director of the garrison's political department, explained that there was a lot of suspicion among residents at first that soldiers would get involved in local affairs, such as reacting to street protests.
"But we didn't. Unless the protesters illegally entered our barracks or threatened our lives, we did not resort to contacting the police," he said, adding that they respected such activities according to local regulations.
Even when anti-communist literature was thrown over the walls or staff received harassing calls from political groups, officials said they did not react.
That policy of noninterference has over the years helped the garrison gain a good image among residents.
A poll of 1,006 people by the University of Hong Kong last year found that only about 2 percent of those polled had a negative opinion about the garrison.
"Developing a good relationship with citizens has been the key," said Lieutenant General Zhang Shibo, commander of the garrison. "I think that mission has been accomplished."
Major Wu Qiong, a battalion commander with the garrison's communication station, added: "Before 2000, Hong Kong citizens usually kept their distance. But after years of interaction, many now often say hello. I guess that's because they are aware of our decent style of working and strict discipline."
Increasing openness
Compared with the "invisibility" of the early years, the garrison has greatly increased its openness to the outside world in recent years.
Besides regular training and exercises for army personnel, officials have also been promoting links between Hong Kong and the mainland through various activities, said Lieutenant General Zhang Shibo.
The troops have actively participated in public activities, such as planting more than 50,000 trees, donating 2.5 million milliliters of blood and helping more than 2,600 elderly people and children in care homes.
The garrison has also opened its barracks 23 times to visitors, receiving around 469,000 local people, and held summer camps for children.
The last open day, on May 1, attracted 37,000 visitors, far more than the 28,000 expected and extra free admission tickets had to be distributed. Some people waited in line overnight to get a ticket.
During the open days, guests can view the military facilities and watch soldiers perform combat skills and motorcycling stunts, including drills by the first female special forces of the PLA army.
"One of the reasons why we are gaining increasing recognition in Hong Kong is that the openness of the barracks provides local people with an opportunity to know more about us, as well as a platform for us to serve them," said Lieutenant General Wang Zengbo, political commissar of the garrison.
The activities organized by the garrison also present the PLA, the Communist Party of China and the mainland to Hong Kong residents in a proper way, Wang said. "Their national identity and patriotism have greatly increased," he said.
The garrison has organized seven military summer camps for around 1,200 local teenagers, six exchange activities with 1,600 students from 12 local universities and a military camp for college students. The troops also visited the University of Hong Kong for the first time in 2011 and talked with students.
A total of 215 teenagers participated in the military summer camp in 2011, and the number is expected to reach 260 this year.
"Despite the increase, every school can only send one student, while dozens of others actually want to come, so we'll continue enlarging the camp's scale in future," said Wang.
Tung Chee-hwa, former chief executive of Hong Kong, said the camps influence many families and hundreds of people even though there are only about 200 participants every year, and they also would influence the participants' whole life even they only last for 15 days.
In 2010, Hong Kong saw an upsurge of young people wanting to enlist in the military. Most of the 4,000 local young people who signed up for enlisting participated in the garrison's exchange activities and military camps.
The summaries written by military camp participants revealed that the 15-day interaction with the garrison provided them with a chance to learn more about the troops, socialism, the Communist Party of China, as well as the strength of the PLA and China, Wang said.
Boosting defenses
With the garrison enjoying a good image in Hong Kong, Zhang Shibo said the focus has shifted from public relations to bolstering military defense.
The mission of the garrison is mainly to exercise China's sovereignty over Hong Kong, safeguard social stability and provide disaster relief and defense campaigns. However, military training is also a priority.
"Since 2007, we have invested millions to upgrade our army's equipment, navy and air force," said the garrison's commander.
Based on Hong Kong's strategic features, the PLA garrison added a special forces unit, an armored battalion and a chemical defense battalion. It has also been equipped with reconnaissance planes, armed helicopters and air defense missiles.
Soldiers receive regular training. More than 20 drills were held in Hong Kong over the past 15 years.
"We aim to test our basic military strength, commanding and organizing capabilities through joint drills," Zhang Shibo said.
The infantry brigade, the garrison's pillar force, has ranked at the top for three years in the military competitions in the adjacent PLA Guangzhou Military Area Command, which has the administrative control of the garrison.
Speaking of the possible challenges the garrison faces, Brigadier Zhang Jie said the garrison "needs to be prepared to tackle possible regional conflicts at all times".
Contact the writer at zhaoshengnan@chinadaily.com.cn
Yu Daimin in Hong Kong contributed to this story.
Four British banks to pay for scandal!
The finding by the FSA of misselling
could lead to compensation claims ranging from many millions to several
billion pounds from small companies which bought them.
The FSA said the banks had agreed to compensate directly those customers that brought the most complex products.
The finding by the FSA of misselling
could lead to compensation claims ranging from many millions to several
billion pounds from small companies which bought them.
The FSA said the banks had agreed to compensate directly those customers that brought the most complex products.
