The Legitimacy Problem and Democratic Reform in Hong Kong

On 1 July 2003, over half a million Hong Kong people staged a mass protest against the poor governance of the post-handover Hong Kong government. The grievances of the marchers quickly snowballed into a widely backed movement for democracy. The subsequent record-breaking support for pro-democratic candidates during the local elections held on 23 November 2003 unnerved Beijing over its possible loss of control over Hong Kong. Beijing swiftly shifted to a hard-line approach, attempting to dampen the local democracy movement. This paper will expound the five fundamental causes of Hong Kong's broad-based demand for full democracy, analyse its type of democratic transition to illuminate its political dynamics, and highlight the parameters impacting its democratic development.     

The Role of a Political Interest Group in Democratization of China and Hong Kong: the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China

The Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China (HKASPDM) is a cross-border political interest group advocating for democratization in both mainland China and Hong Kong. It was involved in the bold rescue of mainland democrats out of the PRC shortly after the June 1989 Tiananmen crackdown; it constantly exerts pressure on the PRC government to release its political prisoners; it has been influencing the Hong Kong government on the scope and pace of democratization; it communicates with and subsidizes overseas Chinese groups supportive of democratic reforms in China; it is persistently educating the younger generations of Hong Kong and most importantly mainland visitors to Hong Kong on the 1989 Tiananmen tragedy; and its supporters have attempted to cross the border of Hong Kong to Macao to influence the policy of the Chinese government toward political prisoners. As a political interest group based in Hong Kong with cross-border influences on both the mainland and Macao, the Alliance has been making full use of the available political space and freedom of assembly in Hong Kong to achieve their ultimate objective of having a ‘democratic China’. Its existence in the HKSAR is an indication of a certain degree of political tolerance by both the Hong Kong government and Beijing, which have to be very careful of the need to maintain an image of the feasible formula of ‘one country, two systems’ in Hong Kong.     

Hong Kong's policy possibilities and directions toward the mainland‐Taiwan conflict

On 1 July 1997, Hong Kong was returned from British colonial rule to Chinese rule under the sovereignty of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The change in political status of Hong Kong has great impacts on the triangular relationship between Hong Kong, the mainland and Taiwan, in which the mainland and Taiwan are still in a state of intense political conflict and competition. This paper examines the policy possibilities and directions for Hong Kong as a Special Administrative Region of the PRC in handling its relations with Taiwan. It argues that both Beijing and Taipei want to preserve the existing Hong Kong‐Taiwan relations for political and practical purposes but at the same time will try to avoid being forced into a suspected political trap—for Beijing the recognition of Taiwan as an independent political entity and for Taipei the subordination of Taiwan to PRC sovereignty. Between these two baselines, the paper points out that Hong Kong should pursues its own Taiwan policy built upon the interests of Hong Kong and depoliticization of Hong Kong‐Taiwan relations.     

香港社会中民粹主义的影响、成因及消解

香港社会中的民粹主义给香港政治社会发展带来很多消极影响,增加了特别行政区政府依法施政的难度,妨碍香港政治发展的进程,并引起香港一些居民与中央政府的对抗.香港社会中的民粹主义由民生等经济问题而引发,并因选举政治而加剧.消解民粹主义,需要香港社会权力体系和财产体系的分配应照顾各阶层的利益,必须保障草根阶层的基本权利；政府必须兼顾社会精英和普罗大众的利益,对两者的矛盾应加以调和,促成两者的妥协.     

The Hong Kong Policy of the People's Republic of China, 1949-1997

China's policy toward Hong Kong in the period 1949-1997 was primarily driven by utilitarian calculations of national interests and the interests of the Chinese Communist Party. The Hong Kong policy of China, as an integral part of its foreign policy, was distinctive in that ideological fervor and nationalist passions had limited influence. The goals to be achieved by the Hong Kong policy remained unchanged throughout the period; the strategies adopted, however, changed in accordance with the changing international situation and the national interests as defined by the Chinese leaders. The primary goals of the Hong Kong policy were to secure a less threatening external political environment for China and to make calculated use of Hong Kong for China's economic development. By tolerating Hong Kong as a British colony, China also depended on Britain to control the potentially threatening anti-Communist Chinese population there. The 'over-dependence' on the British to control the Chinese people in Hong Kong on the eve of Hong Kong's reversion to China, however, alienated the Hong Kong people as well as impeded the formation of local political leaders in the territory. As a result, the acquisition of Hong Kong by China in 1997 has not been accompanied by political rapport between the Chinese government and the Hong Kong people, thus sowing seeds for lingering friction between them.     

Business as usual: The dynamics of government‐business relations in the Hong Kong special administrative region

This is an attempt to evaluate the implications of Hong Kong's political transition to post‐colonial rule for economic governance in the SAR beyond the ‘Beijing versus Hong Kong’ perspective. The article examines the changing government‐business dynamics in Hong Kong after the reversion by focusing on three inter‐related dimensions: economic ideology; institutional and policy framework; and the new political environment in post‐colonial Hong Kong. By challenging the assertion that Hong Kong is returning to the pre‐Patten colonial order under Chinese management, it argues that economic governance in Hong Kong has always been more complex than has been characterized in the literature. A conceptual framework incorporating the dynamic interplay of domestic and international factors is needed to comprehend the changing nature of government‐business relationships in the SAR.     

From Fortress Hong Kong to Hong Kong–Shenzhen Metropolis: the emergence of government-led strategy for regional integration in Hong Kong

The Hong Kong government was less active in regional integration before 2003. This study explores what conditions have contributed to the shifting of the Hong Kong government's stance on Hong Kong–Shenzhen integration from protectionism to cooperation since 2003. In addition to secondary data, a questionnaire survey and interviews were conducted in this study. Various external and internal economic, political and social factors that have contributed to the emergence of government-led strategy for regional integration in Hong Kong are analyzed. It is found that regional integration is facilitated by consensus building among the government, political parties, other interest groups and residents within Hong Kong.     

以党章立法推进反腐败斗争

我们党历来把反腐败斗争作为一项重大的政治任务来抓。党章是党的根本大法。以党章立法推进反腐败斗争,使党章立法成为反腐倡廉建设法规体系的核心,是使反腐败斗争得到权威、稳定、持续的立法支持的根本保证。通过党章立法将政治意愿化为价值准绳和规范,围绕党章健全反腐倡廉建设相关法规,推进反腐倡廉建设制度创新,是党章立法推进反腐败斗争的有效途径。     

香港的政党与政党政治

在港英政府 2 0世纪 80年代开始的政治体制改革中 ,随着选举政治的兴起 ,香港的政党破土而出 ,并逐渐发展起来。香港进入特区时代以后 ,政党的格局趋于稳定。随着政党的形成和发展 ,香港的政党政治也逐渐稳定下来 ,形成香港特有的政党政治。政党和政党政治的发展 ,又改变了香港的政治生态 ,使香港的政治发展出现新的面貌。     

Hong Kong in United States‐China relations: The international politics of Hong Kong's reversion to Chinese sovereignty

This article examines the implications of the political transition of Hong Kong on US‐China relations in strategic, political and economic dimensions. It evaluates the impact of Hong Kong's changing status in the context of the engagement‐containment debate on China policy in the US. It suggests that US concerns over questions such as democracy and human rights and China's rejection of foreign interference’ in Hong Kong would turn the territory into a source of political conflict between the US and China. Finally it points out that any major trade confrontation between the two countries would have serious implications for the territory. The article concludes by arguing that if Hong Kong could continue to be a prosperous and free society with a global outlook, it would facilitate China's integration with the global community, but if a reversion to authoritarian rule occurred in Hong Kong, US‐China relations will be aversely affected.     

One Formula,Two Experiences: political divergence of Hong Kong and Macao since retrocession

Since the return of Hong Kong's sovereignty to the People's Republic of China, the territory's political development has diverged from that of Macao. The poverty of leadership, state–society confrontations, deinstitutionalization and Beijing's explicit intervention have marked Hong Kong's political development from 1997 to 2004. Since April 2004, the Hong Kong governing style has converged with that of Macao in terms of its pragmatism. Although Macao's political development is characterized by leadership finesse, state–society partnership and institutionalization, its relatively weak civil society and lack of democratic reforms are by no means an attractive ‘one country, two systems’ model to Taiwan; nor does Hong Kong's ‘one country, two systems’ appeal to the Republic of China. Yet, the political corruption and chaos that punctuate Taiwan's democracy have failed to have any positive demonstration effect on Hong Kong and Macao. While the models of Hong Kong and Macao are bound to diverge from that of Taiwan, political development in the two Chinese Special Administrative Regions is gradually converging.     

Hong Kong's ‘One Country,Two Systems’ Experience under the Basic Law: two perspectives from Chinese legal scholars

Hong Kong is an administrative and economic entity under Chinese sovereignty. Essentially, the local political system that Hong Kong has adopted is that of a non-sovereign state as well as a non-political entity. It is neither entirely occidental nor completely oriental, but an executive-led system which has developed according to Hong Kong's characteristics and has proved to be an effective one. 1997 was not the end of the ‘One Country, Two Systems’ policy, but its beginning. To guarantee the policy's success is in the overall interest of both Hong Kong and China. As such, China has no greater interests in Hong Kong than to maintain its stability and prosperity. The Chinese Central Authorities will continue to abide by the ‘One Country, Two Systems’ policy and the Basic Law whenever problems regarding Hong Kong arise.     

Framing the Democracy Debate in Hong Kong

This article examines the discourses of democracy in the context of political development in Hong Kong during the first 12 years after the 1997 handover using rhetoric and frame analysis. Overall, the study shows how political actors define political options and promote development, which is favourable to their interests and views, through framing democracy in different ways. The study reveals the frames that describe different points of view, and contributes to the understanding of democrats' position as re-framers. The found frames are clustered into paradigmatic framesets that deal with the concrete democracy issue and the political situation in present-day Hong Kong. Consequently, the democracy debate in Hong Kong is organised around two opposite and idealised templates for democracy. The first cluster forms the pro-establishment model, which suggests solutions built around consensus and practical means. The second frameset, mostly used by the pro-democrats, supports the idea of a wider democratic change which entails broad normative changes in politics.     

开展“校园拒绝邪教”活动教师要起表率作用

认清与"法轮功"邪教组织的斗争是一场捍卫党、捍卫社会主义制度的大是大非的严肃政治斗争,是争夺群众、争夺下一代、争夺思想阵地的斗争,所以对这场斗争决不能掉以轻心.贯彻教育部的"通知"精神,在开展"校园拒绝邪教"的活动中,教师要率先垂范,为人师表.     

Economic prosperity or democracy: Dilemma of development in Hong Kong and China

After Hong Kong is integrated with mainland China in July 1997, the economic and political environments of the two places will inevitably link up with each other. Economic modernization significantly not only improves the living conditions of the Chinese, but also alters their social structure and political values. As such, economic prosperity and democracy become the two conflicting values in Hong Kong and China during the transition to 2000. The people of Hong Kong and China are presented a choice over two mutually exclusive targets: economic prosperity vs. democracy. On the one hand, the choice for economic prosperity will imply no democracy because a conservative political system will be maintained to preserve the political status quo. On the other hand, the choice for democracy will imply no economic prosperity, because democratization will be suppressed and hence the economy will suffer as a result of political instability. However, neither of these two choices could offer the people of Hong Kong and China a genuine prosperity and stability. Therefore a congruent relationship between the economy and the political system must be established and maintained. As prosperity is contributed by both economic growth and political stability, neglection of either of these two elements will not result in a long‐lasting prosperity. Thus, economic development and democratization are two complementary rather than contradicting forces on the road to development in China.     

黑社会犯罪论纲

黑社会是指以获取非法暴利为主要目的 ,公然蔑视任何法律秩序 ,拉帮结伙 ,称霸一方 ,以使用暴力强取豪夺或者以提供非法物品及不正当服务为惯用手段 ,有组织地实施多种犯罪的社会邪恶势力 ,但与具有政治目的的党派或其他行帮、社团等有明显的区别。从历史的角度看 ,中国存在产生黑社会的肥沃土壤 ;港澳台黑社会势力的渗透是大陆黑社会形成的催化剂 ;多种经济成分并存 ,经济和政治的不正常结合必然产生黑社会“怪胎” ;老板与雇员之间的人身依附关系 ,是黑社会产生的组织基础 ;一些弱势群体寻求保护 ,也成为黑恶势力滋生、壮大的温床 ;对罪犯的改造效果减弱 ,也是滋生黑社会犯罪的重要原因 ;官场腐败进一步促使黑社会犯罪恶性膨胀。为此 ,应提高对治理黑社会犯罪紧迫性的认识 ,做好长期作战的准备 ;大力开展调查研究 ,进一步摸清底数 ;改革公安体制 ,加强组织建设 ;改进“打黑”办法 ,注重长期经营 ;整顿、纯洁公安司法队伍 ;改善执法环境 ,增强改造效果 ;健全有关反黑立法 ;认真搞好党的自身建设和政府的廉政建设。     

From Contention Emerges Contentment

For a long time, many in the West have had a warped perception of what exactly has been going on in Hong Kong courtesy of misleading political narratives and media manipulations. In the context of ideological confrontation, Hong Kong is portrayed as a delicate princess violated by an overbearing and all-consuming dragon. The anti-China protesters dominating global headlines are often hailed as "freedom fighters" to garner empathy and serve up the moral high ground for external forces to interfere in China's internal affairs—via the Hong Kong issue.     

大陆香港贿赂罪立法的比较研究

香港贿赂犯罪立法体系结构具有合理性、先进性以及较强的实践操作性 ,而大陆贿赂犯罪立法表现出滞后性和欠缺性 ,应借鉴香港贿赂立法的成功经验 ,完善大陆贿赂犯罪立法 ,从而全面有效地打击日益严重形式多样的源头犯罪——贿赂犯罪 ,为我国经济的发展营造良好的法律空间。     

Hong Kong redux

There are surprises ahead for both Hong Kong and the China of which it will become a part. This article focuses on how the reversion of Hong Kong will affect the future of politics in both societies. Even though rule by Beijing will change Hong Kong's commercial and political life, China will also be changed by having to deal with the emerging elite of Hong Kong and those persons from the mainland who have been educated in the West. This will not produce democracy in either Hong Kong or China but it will reduce the likelihood that China will become a hegemonic power in East Asia.