On May 27, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced that “Hong Kong does not continue to warrant treatment under United States laws in the same manner as US laws were applied to Hong Kong before July 1997.” Three weeks have gone by, and Secretary Pompeo has also just finished a high level discussion with Communist Party Politburo member Yang Jie-Chi in Hawaii, USA. Hong Kong, Taiwan and Xinjiang were on the agenda.

From the perspective of Hongkongers, if you ask ten people on the street, probably “eleven” will tell you they don’t want the National Security Law to be applied to Hong Kong. The pro-Beijing camp would say that around 3 million people signed an online petition or with some signatures collected at different street booths. This is in no comparison to the one-million and two-million marches on June 9 and 16 of last year, a strong gesture against the implementation of the Extradition Bill that was finally retracted.

Has it ever been meaningful to negotiate with CCP China on economic, social, and civil society issues pertaining to Hong Kong? A few of us tried, by writing to President Xi Jin-Ping, from the perspective of business people talking to the “Emperor Forever” who gave lifeline to Hong Kong. The “One Country, Two Systems” was already disintegrating during former Chief Executive CY Leung’s administration, and we wanted Xi to rectify the situation in some shape or form, at least from the receivers’ end, consecrating once again the promise of what Chairman Deng Xiao-Ping had offered to Hong Kong people. The “warranty”, a fifty year promise of autonomy, should not expire before June 30, 2047. Saying one thing and doing another is all too common of what Hongkongers have experienced when dealing with a ruthless regime. When Hong Kong people shouted “Five Demands, No One Less” during the social movement of last year until now, we wrote to Emperor Xi on the “Ten Requests to the Communist Party of China from the People in Hong Kong (Financial Sector)” even a bit earlier. This is the extract to Xi:

Since Hong Kong’s reversion to the motherland, the government policies have increasingly failed to meet the needs of our citizens, creating deep-seated conflicts across various spectrums in our society, and hence seriously undermining Hong Kong’s competitiveness. Hong Kong’s existing political system has become the stumbling block of the city’s long-term development, as well as the root cause of social division and disharmony.

We, a group of Hong Kong people working in the financial sector who truly love the country and Hong Kong, wholeheartedly believe that the central government is one that serves and seeks the greatest well-being for the people. We have full confidence in the future of Hong Kong and hope that the city will remain firmly in its position as an international financial centre. We hope the leaders of the Chinese Communist Party will heed the following 10 Demands, and No One Less:

Ten Demands to the Communist Party of China from the People in Hong Kong (Financial Sector)

1) Fulfill its promises made in the Sino-British Joint Declaration by supporting “one country, two systems”, “Hong Kong people rule Hong Kong”, a high degree of autonomy, and stop interfering Hong Kong's administrative affairs.

2) Establish a system of genuine universal suffrage that conforms to international standards as Hong Kong has been ready for it long ago. Only if the government has a high legitimacy can Hong Kong succeed in implementing “one country, two systems”.

3) Defend Hong Kong's freedom of speech, press, assembly, religion, creation, and all kinds of freedom enshrined in the Basic Law and relevant international conventions.

4) Let Hong Kong enjoy a fair, just, and open business environment, and prevent monopoly by privileged persons in various industries.

5) Let Hong Kong map out a population policy that conforms to the city's long-term interests and attracts professionals and talents from all over the world in a bid to maintain Hong Kong's position as an international financial centre.

6) Safeguard the spirits of the rule of law and judicial independence; do not let the law come down to political tools.

7) Protect the right of the public and the media to monitor the government.

8) Understand Hong Kong's unique historic background and preserve Hong Kong's uniqueness as a melting pot of Eastern and Western cultures.

9) Safeguard Hong Kong's clean governance, exterminate the growth of the bribery culture, and act in concerted efforts with the country's anti-corruption campaign.

10) Use Hong Kong's genuine universal suffrage as a blueprint for democratic elections in China to help the country realize its constitutional dream.

The “10 demands” are just common sense, and it has been an outcry and complaint to the deterioration of the “Two Systems” as prescribed in the mini constitution of Hong Kong, the Basic Law. When we drill deeper into our Demand #2 today, it would be considered as a laughing stock. How could we write to Emperor Xi, when the CCP does not even take their own words seriously? Are we too simple and naïve? In any event, this is the interpretation of Demand #2:

We urge the Chinese communist leaders to respect Hong Kong citizens' wish, and to demonstrate and exercise the rule of law regarding the city's political reform. Only by doing so can we unite Hong Kong, mitigate deep-seated contradictions in the political, economic, and social aspects in the future, and do a good job in carrying out “one country, two systems”. If a bogus universal suffrage with pre-selection or screening is implemented in 2017, then this so-called universal suffrage remains a small-circle election. The Chief Executive thus elected will continue to lack legitimacy and the society will continue to face a predicament in governance. We understand the central authorities' concern regarding the Chief Executive candidates' political allegiance. However, the central authorities should have confidence in Hong Kong citizens who are mature enough in civil awareness not to pick a chief executive who confronts the central authorities. Confidence and people's support are interrelated. If the central authorities have faith in the people of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong people will trust and support the central authorities too.

Like the Frank Sinatra song “My Way”, though we as Hong Kong people know that “the end is near”, we must persevere. Let me quote a phrase from Timothy Snyder’s short book On Tyranny: Authoritarian regimes usually include a special riot police force whose task is to disperse citizens who seek to protest, and a secret state police force whose assignments include the murder of dissenters or others designated as enemies. It truly resembles the situation we are currently in. After one long year of tough fight for Hong Kong’s future, the CCP will soon crack us down hard. The National Security Law is the “devil’s deal” to Hong Kong. History may be written by Emperor Xi, but to the destruction of everything else.

(Edward Chin runs a family office. Chin was formerly Country Head of a UK publicly listed hedge fund, the largest of its kind measured by asset under management. Outside the hedge funds space, Chin is Convenor of 2047 Hong Kong Monitor and a Senior Advisor of Reporters Without Borders (RSF, HK & Macau). Chin studied speech communication at the University of Minnesota, and received his MBA from the University of Toronto. Twitter: edwardckchin Youtube: Ed Chin Facebook.com/edckchin Email: [email protected])

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