Global Voices » Hong Kong (China)

Hong Kong, China: Cross-border Self-drive Tour Instigates Fear and Anger

Ronald Yick — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 05:43:55 +0000

Tension between Hong Kong and mainland China has mushroomed in recent months. While small conflicts, such as a train scuffle, has ignited fury, the recent introduction of a cross-border self-drive tour scheme, signed by the Hong Kong and Guangdong governments without public consultation, has instigated a new round of social panic and anger among Hong Kong people. Some netizens even compare the situation of Hong Kong to Tibet and Xinjiang, where ethnic conflicts have developed into separatism and repression.

The image below, which has been shared more than 130 times via Facebook, is a re-creation of a photo taken recently in Tibet. The slogan on the military vehicle was originally “Han Chinese and Tibetan are one family” (漢藏一家親. It has been widely circulate via micro-blogs to mock the central government's policy in Tibet that the “family” is united by military force. The Hong Kong version of the photo was produced a famous blogger, Kay Lam & Fokguy remix team. The background of the photo is the busiest commercial district in Hong Kong, Causeway Bay and the slogan on the military vehicle has changed into “China and Hong Kong are one family” (中港一家親).

The photo's subtitle states [zh]:
‎

2015 年 SOGO 門口．自駕遊 X 中港一家親幻想圖（來自 2012 年駐西藏的解放軍車）

Taken in font of SOGO in 2015. An imaginary photo of ‘cross-border self-drive tour’ and ‘China and Hong Kong being one family’.

The image is a mockery of the newly announced “Self-Drive Tour” scheme, which allows private cars from mainland China to enter Hong Kong without having a local license. User, Bay area, posts [zh] an article at inmediahk explaining the background of the scheme:

近日驚見到沒有港人看的左報新聞，原來林瑞麟及鄭汝樺已在毫無諮詢的情況下私自與大陸簽訂了「私家車自由行」的條款，未來三月內地私家車就可直入市區，橫衝直撞每個角落，意象可怖。我們可以預視到，深圳廣州現時的交通文化，將會嚴重衝擊全港的交通系統：我們香港第一個小悅悅亦將會很快誕生。

Recently Hong Kong people are surprised by the pro-Beijing's newspaper's news that Stephen Lam [Chief Secretary of Hong Kong government] and Eva Cheng [Head of the Transportation and Housing Bureau] had signed an agreement with mainland Chinese government on “Private vehicle visit scheme”. Within three months, private vehicles from mainland China can ride into the city, reaching every corner at full speed. Imaginating such scenes is horrifying. We can predict that the driving culture from Shenzhen and Guangzhou would crush our transportation system: Xiao Yue Yue [a baby girl killed by hit and run driver in Guangzhou] will soon appear in Hong Kong.

Dictionary of Politically Incorrect Hong Kong Cantonese has translated some discussions among Facebook users:

Chan: Individual visit scheme isn’t enough and there will even be self-drive tour… Don’t fool me! Mainlander drivers don’t follow rules. When I was in China, I dared not to cross roads. Their driving skill and unfamiliarity with the roads of Hong Kong, I really afraid that the no. of traffic accidents are going to surge.

Cest la Vie: Population density, usage of road, parking, driving attitude, environmental problem, law enforcement problem, life risking problem…There are so many problems. Why do self-drive tour have to be implemented? Crazy?

Everybody should protect the remaining freedom of Hong Kong. Left handed drive and right handed drive will harm many innocent citizens. Besides, reckless Mainland Chinese drivers really make people shivering. Hong Kong citizen have to object that. Put everybody’s safety to the first priority. Please!

Apart from road safety, air pollution and traffic jams, people are angry about the under-table arrangement of cross-border policy. As by Land Justice League, a civic group advocating social justice and democracy, pointed out :

中港跨境政策一直是本地政治團體和社會運動鞭長莫及的「黑洞」，整套操作完全排斥市民﹝其實是兩地人民﹞，甚至是立法會的參與。由議題設定、研究、制訂政策，市民全不知情，無從過問，每次都是見到曾蔭權或唐英年或林瑞麟與國內官員排排企簽約，市民才透過愈來愈麻木的主流記者得悉，「阿爺又俾著數啦/中央又挺港啦」。

Cross-border policy is like a “black hole” and local political parties and civil societies do not have any say in the process. The negotiation has excluded all citizens, both Hong Kong and mainland Chinese citizens. Even the Legislative Council cannot participate in the discussion. There is no way for us to know about their agenda and considerations. Only when mainstream media reports about Donald Tsang of Stephen Lam signing the agreement with mainland officials, do we know that “grandpa [meaning central government] is offering policy favors to Hong Kong again”.

我們每次都是看人家在簽我們的條約，我們從來沒有一次屬於香港人的、可以引以自豪的「簽約儀式」。香港這個不斷「被簽約」的命運共同體要自主，第一步是要離開、違背、拒絕、撕毀綑綁着我們的條約、協議和遊戲規則…

They are signing all these agreements for us, but the agreements do not belong to Hong Kong people. There is nothing to be proud of. Hong Kong needs to be independent from all these “unequal treaties”, the first step is to walk away, reject and tear apart from all these agreements, treaties and political games that trap us in unequal relations…

Hong Kong, China: Netizens Mock the University of Hong Kong

Oiwan Lam — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 05:18:06 +0000

The University of Hong Kong has finished a review report on the arrangement of China's Vice Premier Li Keqiang's visit to the university last year for its centennial celebration, or the so-called Hong Kong 818 incident.

During the ceremony, the campus was sealed off by heavy police forces stationed among students and alumni present, and the scene of a student brutally held down by a group of police officers when he tried to join other protesters quickly stirred up public outrage.

The newly-released report now reveals that the ceremony was scheduled to coincide with the vice premier's visit, proving true much public speculation that the ceremony was carefully designed as a political “show” aimed at pleasing the Beijing government.

The comic below is a recreation of the university's logo which has been widely circulated on Facebook this week. Replacing the symbol of the dragon-lion with the flag of China and the school motto, “Sapientia Et Virtus”, with “loyalty to the Party and to the State - the First People's University of Hong Kong City, Guangdong province” (忠黨愛國﹣廣東省香港市第一人民大學), the comic is a mocking reference to the downgrading of a what is currently an international university to that of a third-grade (city level) university in China. (I have shared the picture in my own Facebook Wall).

A satirical comic widely circulated online about the Hong Kong 818 incident

Hong Kong: Oldest English Newspaper Turning Red?

Oiwan Lam — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 03:55:25 +0000

Asia Sentinel has a news story about the latest development of the oldest English newspaper, South China Morning Post, in Hong Kong. The writer believes that the appointment of the newspaper's new Chief editor, former China's Daily's reporter and a CPPCC member Wang Xiangwei is part of the trend of the China Communist Party's move in media takeovers in Hong Kong.

Taiwan: 2012 Election Sets Example for Mainland Chinese Democratization

I-fan Lin — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 09:32:22 +0000

Taiwan's presidential and legislative election was held on January 14, 2012. Incumbent Ma Ying-jeou of the Kuomintang (KMT) was reelected as President with 51.6% of the vote. Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) challenger Tsai Ing-wen resigned her post as chairperson of the DPP following her election defeat.

Chinese communities around the world were closely watching the results, as Taiwan is the first among the Chinese societies to transition from authoritarian to democratic governance. Many people from mainland China and Hong Kong travelled to Taiwan to observe the political process; they wonder if Taiwan can set an example for the future democratization in mainland China.

Beijing based journalist Mark MacKinnon was surprised by Taiwanese enthusiasm for politics:

As a Beijing correspondent, it's so weird to see and hear people talking and shouting - in Chinese - about politics.

Based on the website of the Central Election Commission, 74.38% of eligible voters casted their votes in 2012. Ma Ying-jeou won reelection with 51.60% of the total votes cast, and Tsai Ing-wen gathered 45.63%.

Taiwan sovereignty

Different from the previous election, the usual Blue (KMT) and Green (DDP) antagonism seems absent, yet Taiwanese sovereignty remains the most critical issue. Karlatheo expressed [zh] expressed her concern after the election:

1月14日，平靜地去投票。與朋友相聚。其實大家並不特別在意哪一黨得勝，但是很在意台灣的主體性是否會失落。…知道中國的因素主宰著這次的選舉，經濟的問題是所有的人都得面對的。…馬總統，請記得您是我們僕人

On Jan[uary] 14, I went to vote peacefully. Then I gathered with friends. We do not care which party won the election, but we do care about whether Taiwan’s sovereign will be kept…We knew the issue of China dominated this election, and everyone needs to face the economic problems… President Ma, please remember you are our servant.

Nathan Batto was also worried about the future of the Taiwan-China relationship after the election:

With a sizeable 70-43 majority in the legislature, Ma Ying-jeou is not going to immediately become a lame duck president. Instead, he probably has enough power to do most of what he wants. He will almost certainly have the power to implement the next stage of ECFA, and it is not out of the question that he could push through the peace agreement that he mentioned during the campaign.

Researcher fellow at the Asian Studies Center at the Heritage Foundation, Dean Cheng, pointed out:

A strong Taiwan, confident in its relationship with the U.S., is key to peace and security in the region. In the weeks before Taiwan’s election, the U.S. Administration suddenly dispatched several senior officials to Taiwan. As it has been almost 12 years since a visit from a sitting U.S. cabinet member, the re-election of President Ma would seem to present an opportunity to demonstrate that this lack of attention has come to an end.

Example for mainland China

Those who could not fly to Taiwan to observe the election watched the news closely. Lele is from China [zh], but she has observed Taiwanese elections for more than a decade:

尽管不是长在台湾生在台湾，也不是亲哪个党派的政治狂热分子，但台湾四年一次的总统大选开票直播，我一定会观看。这已是第四次看到台湾总统大选了。…台湾民主大选制度逐渐走向成熟，不知大陆何时也能向台湾一样走上这一条路？大陆老百姓也有选举国家领导人的权利？

I was not born and have never lived in Taiwan. I am not political fanatic for any party, but I always watch the live broadcast of the election in Taiwan every four years. This is my fourth time watching it… The election system in Taiwan has become mature. When will China step onto the same road as Taiwan? When will Chinese have the right to vote for our leaders.

@darkillzhou [zh] (on Weibo) from China made jokes about the mainland Chinese election when talking to his Taiwanese friend:

刚一台湾朋友结束聊天时对我说，“明天早上我們要去投票了﹐晚上就知道總統是誰了”，我顿时不知如何答复。虽然我们之间的交流没有任何障碍，但在他面前真觉得无地自容。我只好说，“你们太落后了，我们如果明天早上投票的话，今天晚上就知道谁会当选了。。。”

My Taiwanese friend just told me they will go to vote for their president tomorrow morning, and they will know who wins the presidential election by the evening. Suddenly I did not know how to respond. Although our communication was smooth, I felt very ashamed. At the end, I said, ‘You Taiwanese are not efficient. If we mainland Chinese go to vote tomorrow morning, we would know who win the election tonight…’

In Hong Kong, columnist 練乙錚 (Lian Yi-Zheng) talked about [zh] how this election may change the future of China:

台灣的故事，如果只看到七八十年代，那是和大陸到目前為止差不多的，但到了八十年代，故事出現政治拐點，五千年文明古國民主化了。其後發展，大家清楚，要點是：台灣經驗是一個近乎完整的立國經驗。政治上，從極權到民主、從專制到自由；經濟上，從落後到富足，從漁農到包含大量高科技。
台灣在國際上沒有話語權，在全球華人當中的政治比重也很低，但一個內容豐富的「台灣論述」正在積聚力量，吸引着全世界大小角落裏正在徬徨焦慮地尋找精神家園的華人；這次到台灣觀選的陸人港客，便是這個論述的吸收者、傳播者。

What has happened in Taiwan is similar to that in China, if we only look at Taiwan’s history before 1980. In the 1980s, there was a turning point in their politics. Building upon the 5,000-year-old culture, the country became democratic. All of us know the following story: the so-called ‘Taiwan experience’ is similar to an experience of founding a state. Politically, they became democratic after totalitarianism, and now they enjoy freedom after autocracy. Economically, they became wealthy from [being] an undeveloped country, and they have developed hi-tech industry in addition to fishery and agriculture.
Taiwan can hardly speak out on the international stage. On the political stage of Chinese society all over the world, Taiwanese only play a small role. However, the ‘Taiwan proposal’ with a rich content is gaining its energy. This proposal attracts Chinese people all over the world who are anxious to find their spiritual homeland. This time, those people from Hong Kong and mainland China who went to Taiwan to observe this election will absorb this experience and spread it.

In China, 水木丁 pointed out [zh] it is an opportunity for people in China to reflect why they do not think democracy is a choice for China:

我看蔡英文的演讲时，一直在想这个问题，不知道那些持如此论调的人，看到这一场总统选举，会有什么样的说辞，所以美国人英国人可以讲民主，我们不配讲民主？所以连一衣带水的台湾人都可以讲民主，我们不配讲民主吗？全世界都素质高，只有我们素质低，不配讲民主吗？
我看到台湾大选的井然有序，内心感慨，因为我知道这些和我们一样的黄皮肤黑眼睛的同胞们正在学习，他们也曾选错人，也曾走过弯路，发生过闹剧，陷入过绝望，但是他们还是继续选择了这条路，不问自己配不配。我看到他们站在大雨中，胜利的人们和失败的人们，因为有信念，知道自己想要一个怎样的世界，所以也就有希望。我突然想到这个配不配的问题，这世界上貌似没有那个国家的人民，是要先证明自己配民主和自由，才被施舍民主和自由的，想到此岸的人们竟然要怀疑自己到底配不配，这真是羞辱。民主的确是要慢慢来，但绝对不是从证明自己配不配开始。

When I watched Tsai Ing-Wen’s talk, I kept thinking about this question: I do not know what those people will say about this election. Americans and British people can talk about democracy, but we are not qualified for talking about democracy, are we? Now Taiwanese can talk about democracy on the other side of the strait, but we still cannot talk about democracy. Is it true that the people outside of China have higher quality and we do not? Is this why we are not qualified for talking about democracy?
I have some reflections when I saw the election in Taiwan held smoothly. I know these people with yellow skin and black eyes, who look like us, are learning. They had chosen the wrong person. They had taken the detour. There had been a farce. No matter what has happened, they continue walking on the way they choose. They do not ask if they are qualified. I saw them standing in the rain, the supporters of the winning party and the supporters of the losing party. They have their beliefs. They know what kind of world they want. Therefore they have hope. Suddenly I thought about the question of qualification. No citizen in any country in the world is given out democracy and freedom after they prove that they are qualified for democracy and freedom. Thinking about the doubts about our qualification that many of us have, I feel humiliated. Democracy should be realized step by step, but the process should never start with proving us qualified for it.

Encouraged by the observers in Hong Kong, mainland China, and other parts of the world old cat believes [zh] the Taiwanese should be strong and help the democracy movement in China:

在這一次大選中，許多同胞憂慮中國透過讓利、市場力量，軟性影響台灣的選舉，而選前大批企業老闆公開支持九二共識，被視為中國影響的證明。這些憂慮當然很合理，但我們只能單向憂慮嗎？我們不能反向送出我們的魅力嗎？
這是台灣的機會…如果台灣對中國的民主化有貢獻，未來我們才有機會贏得十三億人的同理認同…台灣雖小，卻占有舉足輕重的位置，我們不應該再用逃離中國的心態思考未來。
無論幸或不幸，我們就是站在這個奇異的歷史高點上了，華人的民主典範，也許不是我們設定的目標，但卻是我們實實在在擁有的力量。
不應該辜負這樣的力量。

In this election, many Taiwanese worried about the influence of China on our election through their economic power. Before the election, many heads of big Taiwanese companies supported the so called 1992 consensus in the public. Their actions are considered as the influence of China. These worries are very reasonable. However, are we only able to worry about China? Aren’t we able to attract their eye?
This is an opportunity for Taiwan… If Taiwan contributes to the democratization in China, we may earn the heart of the 13 hundred million people in China… Taiwan is small, but we stand on an important position. We should stop evading China when we plan our future.
No matter if it is lucky or not, we are at the magic point in the history. Being a model of democracy in the Chinese society may not be our goal, but this is the power in our hand.
We should not waste this power.

Video Highlights: Music, Indigenous Initiatives, Indignation and Wonder

Juliana Rincón Parra — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 04:44:07 +0000

This section aims to showcase interesting and recent posts in Global Voices that show the many ways in which videos are helping people tell stories all around the world. You can follow the activity by regions in our YouTube channel or by clicking on the regional header links.

Music and Indigenous Initiatives

Latin America

Brazil: Cultural Debate as ‘Oh if I Catch You' Song Goes Global

Music has spurred an ongoing debate in Brazil, as netizens realize they have a new cultural ambassador which they may not have chosen themselves. In this case, it is Michel Teló's song ‘Ai se eu te pego‘ which not only became the rhythm played over and over during the end of the year festivities, but has also crossed borders, even getting its own versions in English, Polish and Dutch.

Peru: Cápac Raymi, The Andean Christmas

In Peru, the Incan culture is still alive in most of the Andean region, and Christmas is a time when they have united their pre-Columbian traditions with the later Christian festivities. The festival of Capac Raymi takes place in December coinciding with the Winter Solstice and honors the Sun. Although the holiday is no longer observed as it was during the reign of the Incas, it has transformed into an Andean Christmas, where Christmas choirs sing in Quechua with Andean musical instruments and dances:

Another strong cultural group in Peru is the Afro-Peruvian community and they have also left their mark in how Peruvians celebrate Christmas:

Peru: Afro-Peruvian Christmas Music

The song “Black Christmas” by Cesar Calvo is a lament, where they sing to Baby Jesus who was born in a manger, but with a slight difference, he is black as the people surrounding him:

Washed by the night
Just like you and me
Born among blacks
the Baby Jesus.

Don't come down, Baby,
from your altar,
lest the master
has you whipped.

Venezuela: The Essence of African Music in Videos

African heritage in Venezuela has also strongly influenced the music, and online video is being used to spread the knowledge of the African Diaspora and Afro-Venezuelan Caribbean culture.

From Canada comes a video journalist with a project: To visit one country per week and to record the stories of under-reported minorities.

Video: One Year, One World and 52 Different Stories

So far she is still raising funds for this one year journey where she would be recording, editing and producing short documentaries from the road. A short video of her visit with the Embera indigenous communities in Panama gives us a promising look into the type of content she'd be delivering once her project takes off:

Video: Online Media by and for Indigenous People

Check out the list of 12 recommended films on indigenous issues that Indigenous Cry shared.

Indignation

In Guatemala, indignation has overwhelmed citizens after investigative journalism uncovered that the President of the Chamber of Agriculture of that country had children under 14 years of age working in his sugar cane fields. Cane cutting is considered very physically demanding even for adults, and the conditions under which the cane cutters work contrast with the growth of the sugar industry.

Guatemala: Child Labor in the Sugar Cane Fields

The video, made under the guise of a photographic project to make portraits using an old fashioned camera shows the workers, including children who work long days without even making minimum wage:

In Brazil, the indignation has been caused by the violent forced evictions in what is being called a massacre:

Brazil: “Massacre of Pinheirinho” Causes an Uproar

Urbanist and UN Special Rapporteur Raquel Rolnik reported:

Thousands of men, women, children and elderly residents of the Pinheirinho occupation are surprised by a siege consisting of helicopters, armored vehicles and more than 1,800 armed men of the military police. In addition to the exits of the occupation being blocked, the water, electricity and telephone were cut, and the order was for families to gather to begin the process of retreat. Determined to resist - as the repossession had been suspended on Friday - the residents did not accept the command, initiating a dramatically violent situation that lasted all day and that has resulted in homeless families, people injured, arrests and rumors, including of the existence of fatalities.

East Asia

Hong Kong residents are becoming outraged: the cultural clashes have citizens and bloggers in a tense situation where any event is cause for fury:

China and Hong Kong: Train Scuffle Ignites Cross-Border Fury

Hong Kong Rethinks its Relationship with Mainland China

While bloggers in Hong Kong complain about their stretched resources and bubble economy, seeing the mainlanders as the intruders and sharing music videos where Mainland Chinese are compared to locusts, others such as Grey Reporter see both parties as victims of the system:

Actually, Hong Kongers and mainlanders share the same destiny – to end the authoritarian rule of the Chinese Communist Party and the collusion between the rich and the powerful.

Wonder

Middle East & North Africa

Jordan: Let it Snow

Snow in Jordan had people whipping out their mobile phones and documenting the long awaited snow fall, even if it didn't stick.

But in case you are in a place where the snow does stick, what about checking out the video tutorial on how to build an igloo with just snow and a knife?

Eastern and Central Europe

CEE: A “Safe House” and an Igloo

Why do I wish to see Hong Kong's independence

Andy Yee — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 14:05:26 +0000

Amid a series of social and cultural clashes between Hong Kong and Mainland Chinese, Hong Kong netizen Marie Meow has written an open letter (English translation here) on Facebook exploring the reasons, possibilities and limitations for a Hong Kong independent from China. The letter has gone viral on the Hong Kong Internet, attracting lots of positive feedback.

Hong Kong Rethinks its Relationship with Mainland China

Andy Yee — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 14:27:07 +0000

2012 will see the 15th anniversary of the return of Hong Kong to mainland China. But Hong Kongers have little mood for celebration. A survey conducted by the University of Hong Kong in December 2011, found that the number of respondents who view themselves as Hong Kongers is more than double the number who view themselves as Chinese.

Over the years, it has been a received wisdom that blessing from the mainland underpins the development of Hong Kong. This is most apparent when China’s support helped Hong Kong endure the 2003 SARS epidemic crisis and the 2009 global financial meltdown. However, after recent social and cultural clashes with the mainland, the Hong Kong public is now questioning that wisdom.

Comical presentation of Professor Kong Qingdong, by Hong Kong cartoonist Cuson Lo

In January 2012, hundreds of Hong Kongers protested outside luxury store Dolce & Gabbana, which allowed mainland Chinese tourists but not local residents to take photos in front of the store. In a separate incident, disputes broke out between Hong Kong passengers and mainland tourists who ate on a train. It turned into a public fury when Peking University professor Kong Qingdong added fuel by saying that Hong Kong people are “running dogs”.

In fact, in recent months, news headlines in Hong Kong are all about how mainlanders ‘invade’ the city. Local hospitals are stretched to the limits as pregnant women from the mainland crossed the border to give birth with the hope of securing a Hong Kong passport for their offspring. Mainland buyers exhausted the Hong Kong baby milk powder market amid food scandals in China. And as millions of Chinese tourists visit the city every year, it seems that all local residents could feel is their disregard of civic values and rule of law.

Last year, Hong Kong netizens made a popular music video named Locust World, which described mainland Chinese as “locusts” who like to “jump queues, spit in public”, “shout in restaurants, hotels and shops” and would use up the city’s resources. A version with English subtitle could be found here:

A view which is very common among mainlanders is that “without China’s economic support, Hong Kong would have been dead long ago.” But many Hong Kongers now think that the “mainland invasion” has done more harm than good to Hong Kong. Certain sectors, like retail, finance and real estate, have benefited greatly from mainlanders, but the inflation and housing bubbles created make the rest suffer. Furthermore, Hong Kong’s public system is yet to be prepared for a large influx of mainlanders. There is also a fear of the erosion of traditional Hong Kong values like the rule of law.

These views are now prevalent among Hong Kong bloggers and social critics. It is a complex challenge facing Hong Kong, one interlaced with local vs. mainland and poor vs. rich conflicts.

At Asia Sentinel, Alice Poon, a former real estate professional and author of Land and the Ruling Class in Hong Kong, explores the value gap between mainland and Hong Kong, and the fact that only a narrow range of sectors could benefit from closer relationship with the mainland:

The unbridgeable gap seems to be between (Hong Kongers’) acceptance and (most mainlanders’) rejection of or aversion to universal values like rule of law, democracy, equality and liberty. It is not through the latter’s fault that they find these values alien; it’s just because they have been living under a political system that has infiltrated them with the idea that those are not Chinese values and therefore no good for them. The system has taught people that all they need worry about is the economy and how to make money and practically nothing else. Morals aren’t important. Corruption can be tolerated. There is of course no lack of intellectuals in China who have refused to be brainwashed and who truly embrace universal values, but most of them unfortunately are rewarded with either political exile or incarceration.

It goes without saying that the only Hong Kong people who welcome mainland tourists, immigrants and shoppers are developers and their cronies (real estate agents, contractors etc.), especially those who are large shopping mall landlords. Even for retailers, whether or not they can benefit from the influx depends on whether the products they sell are mainlanders’ favorites. As for the rest of Hong Kongers, all they can feel towards the swamping inflow is resentment.

Meanwhile, however, the influx of Chinese capitals and tourists could have some damaging long-term effects on Hong Kong’s economy. Stanley5’s Blog explains:

正正是因為「自由行」、中資企業來港上市，以及給境外人士投資地產，搞到香港白白失去產業轉型的機會。現在香港只有金融、地產與旅遊服務業，大量人才與資金被吸過去，地價租金又被推高，以至製造業消亡，其他產業也一蹶不振，就連我最愛的港產片也快要消失了。我經常說：論出口品牌，韓國有SAMSUNG，台灣有 HTC，新加坡也有CREATIVE，香港有什麼？山寨機？莎莎？屈臣氏？米蘭站？

It is because of Hong Kong’s dependence on mainland tourists, the listing of Chinese enterprises in Hong Kong, and Chinese investments in real estate that it loses the opportunity to transform itself. Today, Hong Kong can only boost its finance, real estate and tourism services industries, which suck in a large amount of resources and talents. The real estate bubble leads to the death of the manufacturing industry. Other industries and products, like my favourite Hong Kong films, are also dying. I always say: in terms of export brands, South Korea has Samsung, Taiwan has HTC, even Singapore has Creative. What does Hong Kong have? Copycat phones? Sa Sa? Watson’s? Milan Station? [Note: The latter three are Hong Kong retailers.]

但令我討厭的是，現在不少來自大陸的所謂「遊客」，其實並非來旅遊，也非欣賞香港，而是為了「辦貨」、帶水貨，賺兩地貨幣的匯率差價，還有不少人是挪用公款、洗黑錢 (例如 D&G 要保護的人)。但最難頂的是他們部分人的惡劣舉止與財大氣粗。你叫我要包容，我告訴你，他們很多人根本就沒有「自由行」的資格！

But what annoys me is that many of the so-called “tourists” from mainland come here not to tour, but to buy products only to resell them for a profit in the mainland. And a large number of them do this with black money (like those under Dolce & Gabbana’s protection). And what is most disgusting is their rude behavior. If you tell me to be tolerant, I would say that many of them do not qualify to be “tourists”!

Profile image of @leungmantao

If the abundance of natural resources is an economic curse for some countries, the closeness to Chinese spending power is another form of curse for Hong Kong. Hong Kong has one of the highest levels of income inequality in the world. This is where you can find the world’s third-most expensive shopping strip, while over 100,000 people have to live in 6ft by 2ft “cage homes”. As Hong Kong has gotten more and more wealthy, many local residents are left behind. Prominent social critic Leung Man To draws our attention to the decline of Venice as an ominous warning for Hong Kong:

想當年威尼斯衰落之後，只能憑觀光賺錢；但遊客一多，物價便升，地租更是貴得離譜，於是漸漸逼退老居民，終於鬧到今日這步田地，好端端一座輝煌千年稱霸地中海的貿易大城只剩下可憐的六萬個倖存者。至少在飲食上，如今我能看到香港「威尼斯化」的迹象，「價廉物美」變得愈來愈難，又貴又不好吃的地方反而日益增多；要是肯一擲千金，選擇倒是不少。眼見茶餐廳「餐蛋麵」那兩片餐肉愈切愈薄，北上定居的人群愈去愈多，你叫香港人怎能不生氣？怎能不感到危機四伏？

After its decline, Venice could only depend on tourism for income; but as visitors become numerous, prices of commodities and real estates skyrocketed. This drove away the local residents. Today, only 60,000 residents remain in this glorious city which once dominated the Mediterranean for a thousand years. I can see Hong Kong following the path of Venice, at least from its restaurants. It is increasingly difficult to find “value for money” eating out places, but it’s not hard to find places which are expensive but so-so. Of course, you still have many choices if you are willing to pay. As the piece of meat in the “meat-egg noodles” you get in restaurant becomes thinner, and more and more people around you migrate to the mainland, how can we not feel angry? How can we not feel perilous?

That being said, while Hong Kong could blame the mainland for all the social issues, it might have more to do with the policy failures of the Hong Kong government. In the opinion of blogger Grey Reporter:

香港作為一富裕城市，但貧富差距之驚人，基層生活的匱乏，以至中產的生活質素也好不到那裡。公義、多元性、市容、環保、文化創意…等都跟真正富裕城市相去甚遠，這一切和內地人也沒有關係。

As a prosperous city, Hong Kong has shockingly high inequality. The grassroots population lacks basic security, and the middle class is not much better. Justice, diversity, city planning, environmental protection, culture and innovation…… in all these regards, Hong Kong lacks behind other cities which can justly call themselves rich. All these have nothing to do with the mainlanders.

政府無長遠計劃鼓勵主流港跟少數族裔以至新移民共融，也沒有魄力去長遠解決香港的醫療人手不足，房屋及各項福利如教育學額不足等問題，仍是採取頭痛醫頭，腳痛醫腳，以及自生自滅的方式。於是，造成資源不足所出現的民粹意識，不深究政府的規劃缺失，把矛頭指向「外來者」爭資源。

The government has no long-term planning to encourage minority groups or immigrants from mainland to integrate into the Hong Kong society. It also lacks a comprehensive and long-term approach to tackle the lack of resources in health care, housing and education. It views them in bits and pieces. In the end, when cracks appear in the public system, populist opinion directs their anger at the “outsiders” who steal away their fair share. But what we should criticize is the government’s failure to plan for the long-term.

In the end, he hopes that ordinary Hong Kong people could realize the fact that they, like most mainlanders, live in an unjust political system under which the rich and the powerful collude. They share the same destiny, that is, to end this injustice:

其實香港人和內地人有著共同命運，就是對抗中共強權及與之勾結的富豪權貴，結束專制和不公義的執政狀況。相比之下，一些內地人的「不文明」舉動算不了甚麼。畢竟如果認為香港是一個包容的社會，便應該抱以寬容及「循循善誘」的態度。要知道，三、四十年前的香港也「文明」不了多少(現在也不見得香港人人文明守禮)，大家還不是如此走過來。

Actually, Hong Kongers and mainlanders share the same destiny – to end the authoritarian rule of the Chinese Communist Party and the collusion between the rich and the powerful. Relatively speaking, the “uncivilized” behaviors of some mainlanders do not matter much. After all, if Hong Kong calls itself an inclusive society, it should be more tolerant and patient. Thirty or forty years ago, Hong Kong was not much better (and not all Hong Kongers now are civilized). We have gone through the same path.

China and Hong Kong: Train Scuffle Ignites Cross-Border Fury

Oiwan Lam — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 15:08:22 +0000

A YouTube video showing a dispute on a train in Hong Kong in which a mainland China tourist was criticized by passengers for eating food with her child inside the cabin, has triggered a fierce cross-border debate between mainland Chinese and Hong Kong people. As if tempers were not already flaring high, a Beijing University Professor, Kong Qingdong, added fuel to fire with his remark on a mainland online television channel that Hong Kong People are “running dogs” [lapdogs].

Below is a local news report on the subway train dispute on January 15, 2012. YouTube user Languagelover7 has added subtitles in English at the top of the screen:

The unedited version can be found here [zh]. It has attracted more than five million views within four days. Below is an explanation of the situation from the Hong Kong side:

當天與女友在紅磡站上車，上車後近我的兩排位都坐滿人，一邊一個大人三個小孩，一邊即是三個大人以及他們的行李。當時都不以為然；後來看到那個媽咪張一包童星點心麵倒進她旁的小孩手中，而另外兩個女孩則有一個拿著糖包。及後雙手捧著一堆點心麵的小孩不小心將一些灑到身上及地上。看到這個程況，我便以我有限的普通話，指著不准飲食的牌向他們說：不好意思，這裡不能吃東西。之後…..換來一輪啾呼叫。那媽咪說只是小孩子吃，以及正在收起，問我為何要多事…..我向他說剛才我都有見你放進自己口中，你也有吃…..其實講左幾句我都知冇結果，誰知這時他們對面的友伴邊笑邊出聲：佢地說得真是很差！我很火用廣東話同佢地講：我係講得差！呢度係香港人的地方，你同我講返廣東話。這時他們有一句沒一句繼續講，這時有位見義勇為的男仕出聲：收聲啦！好嘈呀！繼續食呀好唔好？自己做錯野仲嘈，要唔要叫職員呀？當那班人還在嘈時，男仕在旺角東站按著車門，等職員過來。而我亦第一時間下車向職員揮手叫他們過來。之後你地都響YTUBE度見到晒

On that day I was with my girlfriend at Hung Hom Station. All the seats in the cabin were taken. On one side was an adult and three children, on the other side were three adults with their luggage. Later, I saw the mother pouring some noodle snack into the hands of one kid, while the other two girls were holding some candies. The kid with the noodle snack spilt some on his clothes and on the floor. I used my limited Mandarin [standard Chinese of mainland China], pointed at the “No eating allowed” sign in the cabin, and told them: ‘Excuse me, you can't eat here'. What happened next was a round of defense. The mom said that only the kids were eating, that she was about to take it away, and that it was none of my business… I told her that I saw her eating as well… I knew I could not change their attitude and was about to shut up, but then her friends sitting opposite to her, sneered at me: “Their Mandarin is so lousy.” I got so angry and talked back in Cantonese: ‘My Mandarin is lousy! This is Hong Kong, you should speak in Cantonese!' They kept on defending themselves in loud voices. A man in the cabin stood up by my side: “Shut up! It's so noisy here! Just keep on eating OK? How could you yell like this when you have done wrong? Should I call the railway staff?” As they continued to speak loudly, the man pushed the button to call staff when the train reached the next station. And I waved the railway staff over to take care of the situation. What happened next, you can see on the YouTube video.

There are two major reactions to the video in Hong Kong. Some criticize the lack of etiquette by mainland Chinese; and others feel there is no need to make such a big scene. The most popular comment on the YouTube thread is made by suilaam321:

@MrDrxchannel 請問你有看part1了嗎你有聽到片主被嘲笑嗎? 中國大陸沒這麼糟糕?也許是小部份人吧暑假最多中國大陸人來香港的時候我分別去了香港迪士尼和海洋公園但情況是無論去到那一個主題公園都會有大陸人插隊當然我沒有說全部大陸人都這樣也許你會說香港人也一樣但香港人一般被指責後都會乖乖排隊我遇到的卻是我只說叫他們不要插隊同行插隊的那個女人便開始發爛說前面有人幫排隊之類試想想如果每個人都這樣會有秩序嗎? 最後我只好找職員那個人卻理直氣壯說邊隻眼見到佢有插隊? 最後卻鬧多事以粗口相對請問這還又是否需要容忍?

@MrDrxchannel Did you see part One? Don't you see how the man was being mocked? Mainland Chinese are not that bad? Perhaps a minority of them are so. During the summer holiday when tourism from mainland China to Hong Kong peaks, I went to Disneyland and Ocean Park. No matter where I went, I could see Mainland Chinese jumping ahead in queues. Of course not all mainlanders are like that. Maybe you'd say Hong Kong people are the same. However, in the case of Hongkongers, usually when you point out their wrong doing, they would get back in line. When I asked a mainland Chinese not to jump the line, the woman when crazy and kept saying that others were jumping the queue too. If everyone does this, will there ever be order in society? I called staff. But the woman said there was no proof that she jumped the line, and cursed at me that it was none of my business. Do we have to put up with this?

As for the response from mainland Chinese, there are more moderate but critical ones, such as this one made by Wen Yunchao on Facebook [zh]:

港人很讨厌在地铁上吃东西的大陆人，因为地铁规定说不能在地铁上吃东西且吃东西的是大陆人；但港人不会讨厌在公车上大声讲电话一讲一路的港人，一则是因为没有规定禁止，二是因为讲电话的是港人。这些都与素质和文明无关。

Hong Kong people hate mainlanders eating in the train because according to subway regulations, it is forbidden. Moreover, it is mainlanders violating the regulation. But Hong Kong people do not hate people speaking loudly in public transportation, because there is no regulation against it, and it's Hong Kong people talking. This has nothing to do with etiquette nor civilization.

The most controversial comment from mainland China popped up on January 19 on online television, in which Beijing University Professor Kong Qingdong said that most Hong Kong people were corrupted by their colonizers and are “running dogs”.

Languagelover7 has also added English subtitles to this video [now offline] and uploaded to YouTube.

The undercurrent of the tension between Hong Kong and mainland Chinese has everything to do with the increasing influence of Beijing government in Hong Kong - as indicated by the official visit of future premier Li Keqiang in August 2011. The political tension has surfaced in several recent cultural and social conflicts such as the public scandals over infant formula milk powder shortage; mainland pregnant women taking up local hospital resources; the “invasion” of mainland Chinese tourists; and the official status of Cantonese language in Hong Kong.

Below is an agitated response on Kong's TV interview made by Tinykylei in her forum [zh] (sic) on January 20 that touches on the broader issues:

Wow …. this is with English subtitle and the translation is pretty accurate … can't believe a mainland Chinese “Scholar” said such a thing - why everyone has to speak Mandarin ? It's right for people can speak in their mother tongue but when you said mainlanders yelling in Hong Kong, and the HK citizen speak in Cantonese they are “dog” and not civilize … can you please check what you have just said again? the HK person also speaking in their mother tongue … I had enough of you CCP and brain-washed mainlanders - go on, keep on sending Mainland Chinese to mix the people and let the rich Mainlanders buy house and stay here, poor mainlanders come to give birth and take the social welfare, and take over the city, you better kill all the HKers who born in HK before 1997 as well

Unhappy Hong Kong Envious of Taiwan's Democracy

Andy Yee — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 14:38:15 +0000

Having witnessed Taiwan's 2012 presidential election, Derrick Tao, a Hong Kong photographer, made a video (with English subtitles) to contrast democratic development of the two societies. As a prosperous but undemocratic city state, “Hong Kong could either join Taiwan as pioneers of freedom and democracy in the Chinese societies”, or “accept the status quo and let go of her ideals and beliefs.”

Video Highlights: Activism, Freedom of Speech, Identity and Culture

Juliana Rincón Parra — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 23:57:18 +0000

Middle East North Africa:

Yemen: The Amazing Life March Arrives in Sanaa
From Yemen we have the amazing story of the historic 264km Life March, which is the longest since Mahatma Gandhi's 390km long Salt March in 1930. During the Life March, villages and towns came together to give food and drink to the thousands of people who marched for four days straight through winding mountain passes protesting the immunity that outgoing President Saleh asked for himself and his aides and family for the killing of protesters in the Yemen uprisings.

However, the march didn't seem to sway the newly formed cabinet members who approved the bill: it will now go on to parliament for it to become a law.
Yemen: Saleh Gets Away With Murder…He Gets Immunity

It is those martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the rest of Yemen to live a life of freedom and democracy, whom Yemenis feel they must never be forgotten nor should their blood go in vain.

This next video is a silent remembrance for those who died during the peaceful uprising:

Some online activists are also promoting an online campaign against a stimulating herb chewed by many Yemeni men and women for hours on end, sometimes daily. The campaign is for a day without using the leafy green plant, Qat:
Yemen: January 12, a Day Without Qat

As blogger @Afrahnasser, proposed on Twitter:

An average citizen in Yemen wastes 8 hrs in searching money for qat, another 8 hrs in chewing qat & the rest 8 hrs in sleeping @NoonArabia

The idea of the campaign is to turn those hours spent on qat into active endeavors which build up Yemen.

Sub-Saharan Africa:

Ethiopia: Swedish Journalists Found Guilty of Terrorism Charges
Swedish journalists Martin Schibbye and Johan Persson crossed from Somalia to Ethiopia illegally which caused the Ethiopian authorities to detain and put them on trial for supporting terrorist activities and crossing illegally into the territory, although the defense claims that they were performing their duty as journalists to report both sides of the conflict. This next video was used as evidence during the trial, where the journalists are seen planning their journey as journalists

Western Europe:

Spain: Fighting for the Right to a Home

Families who got into debt to buy a home and ended without jobs or income to pay for them are being helped by an organization aiming to stop families from being evicted and to give them temporary homes in foreclosed and empty houses when they aren't able to stop the banks. The video on this post shows their success in avoiding an eviction and keeping a man and his 13 year old son off the streets.

Eastern and Central Europe:

Hungary: Memories of Barvalipe Roma Pride Summer Camp
Growing up Roma in Europe can make children feel stigmatized and rejected by their peers, causing them to hide their origins and feel ashamed of their heritage. The Barvalipe Roma Pride Summer Camp aimed to give Roma youth a chance to discover their roots by learning the language, history and cuisine of the Roma people.

East Asia:

Hong Kong: Protest Against Luxury Brand to Defend Local Identity
A luxury brand which doesn't allow for photographs to be taken of its store is not news, but when they stated that the rule only applied for local residents of Hong Kong and not tourists from Mainland China, the people of Hong Kong made their anger known through a flashmob outside the store.

Latin America:

Chile: Wildfire in Torres del Paine Shocks Netizens
The wildfire in one of Chile's top touristic spots, National Park Torres del Paine had netizens blogging and tweeting about the fire, both as experienced by those inside the park at the time of the evacuation and recorded it on video as well as from concerned people following the news and updates.

Central America: LibreBus Project Presents its Documentary
The documentary follows the activists who climbed on board a bus driving through 5 different Central American countries to spread the message of free software, the defense of freedom of speech and content sharing.

Colombia: Salsa Song Criticizes Bus Rapid Transport System
Public transportation makes it easier for people to get from one location to another without having to use their own vehicle, however, when that public transportation system is overcrowded, it can become a torture instead of a relief. The salsa song (with translated captions) shows what it is like for people to use the popular Transmilenio System in the capital city of Bogota.

What it means to be “Chinese” in Hong Kong

Oiwan Lam — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 05:59:19 +0000

Zhongnanhai looks into the identity politics in Hong Kong in relation to mainland China, a motherland and a new colonizer.

Hong Kong: Protest Against Luxury Brand to Defend Local Identity

Oiwan Lam — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 04:41:18 +0000

Thousands of people protested outside Dolce & Gabbana's flagship store on Canton Road, the most crowded tourist area in Hong Kong, yesterday on January 8, 2012.

People gathered, agitated by security guards for the Italian fashion store's security guard who recently banned a local Hong Kong photographer from taking a photo from the sidewalk in front of the store, claiming that only mainland Chinese tourists could do so.

Later, the fashion store explained to local newspapers that the policy is designed to stop people from infringing upon the company's intellectual property rights stored within their window displays. However, the store did not explain why there exist separate policies for dealing with local residents and tourists from mainland China.

Strong reactions to the news spread quickly through Facebook and a call was made to hold a flash mob on Friday for a collective photo-taking action outside D&G to protest the discriminatory policy. Within a few days, more than 17,722 people had clicked to support the event page. The YouTube video below shows the scene on Sunday, as protesters asked D&G to make a public apology:

The crowd gathered outside the shop for more than 8 hours. Below is a bird's-eye view photo of the protest scene:

Photo by Mr. Lee on Facebook" src="http://globalvoicesonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/birdview-DG-375x250.jpg" alt="Photo by Mr. Lee on Facebook" width="375" height="250" />

Photo by Mr. Lee on Facebook

Why are Hong Kong people so angry this time? Professor Wan Chin, an icon for the city's autonomy movement explains [zh] the situation on his Facebook profile:

反對D&G歧視香港人，捍衛香港人的尊嚴，不滿大陸孕婦、大陸遊客和水貨客搞壞香港，是香港人的真感情。我昨日回元朗，婆婆看見電視新聞報道，以為是一般示威抗議，完全不知發生什麼事，但後來知道D&G和海港城只准大陸人影相，禁止香港人拍攝，立即開罵，說商店靠香港人養大，現在討好大陸客，反面無情，豈有此理。她罵到聽唔到口，比我還要激（按：我其實是不激的）。此事說明一切。這是真實的香港人感情。昨日也有好多低下階層的老人家去示威，並接受報紙訪問，也說明一切。

The action is in protest against D&G's discrimination against Hong Kong people, and to defend Hong Kong people's dignity. People here are so angry with the pregnant women, tourists and smugglers from mainland China. They disrupt the social order in Hong Kong. This is the genuine sentiment that Hong Kong people are feeling. Yesterday when I returned back home to Yuen Long, my wife watched the TV and thought it was just another protest. Later she knew that D&G and the Harbour Plaza only allow mainland Chinese to take photos near the mall and ban local Hongkongese from doing so, she was outraged and pointed out that Hong Kong residents have been customers at these malls since they were been built, and now they only care about mainland Chinese tourists and hurting local people's feelings. She was very emotional and could not stop cursing them. This is the real feeling. Yesterday, I saw that some elderly people demonstrated there too.

A protester dressed like Iron Man participated in the protest and explained to local TV that he came down to fight for justice:

Photo taken by Be-linda Kwan, Facebook" src="http://globalvoicesonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/cosplay-375x281.jpg" alt="Photo taken by Be-linda Kwan, Facebook" width="225" height="169" />

Photo taken by Be-linda Kwan, Facebook

Chan King Fai, a radio host, explains where D&G went wrong [zh]:

什麼是别太D&G？
1：别無常識(市民在街上的活動不由名店後花園的保安干涉)；
2：别拜金(迷信掃貴貨的内地豪客才可拍攝)；
3：别忘本(名店不要擺一副高高在上的姿態。你佔用了香港這個品牌、佔據了尖沙咀市中心的景觀，才有人流生意。不尊重這地方的人的生活，是忘本)。

What's wrong with D&G?
1. They lack common sense (How can their security guards intervene in citizens' activities in the street?);
2. They put money first (How can they only allow wealthy mainland Chinese tourists to take pictures outside the shop?)
3. They betray locals and itself (The company is too arrogant. You have your business because you are based in Hong Kong, occupying the center of the city. If you do not respect local people's way of living, you betray your base.)

Yvonne Leung believes [zh] that apart from protesting against discrimination, the ultimate issue is to reclaim the street:

好一個公共空間被商業霸權侵吞、城市過度管理的問題，卻很大程度被演繹為歧視與族群矛盾。難道公平的意義在於，自由行也不許影相，然後大家就收貨？

The issues at stake are of our public space is being occupied by corporations and excessive management of the city. But now it has been overly interpreted as discrimination and an ethnic conflict issue. Will the problem be solved if shopping malls and fashion outlets enforce the same policy with mainland Chinese tourists, banning them from taking photos?

Runaway Szeto tries to create a debate topic at Golden Forum [zh] by questioning the city's values:

D&G事件根本就係嘥9氣!

點解香港會有咁多名牌鋪頭?點解香港會有咁多人用名牌?點解香港賣水貨名牌二手名牌賣到可以上市?就係本身香港人愛名牌、貪慕虛榮、骨子裡就愛階級歧視、資產歧視，愛用名牌去define別人的”層次”, 用名牌去告訴別人自己的”層次”。

現在, D&G就告訴香港人: 花得起錢的才夠”層次”, 我們只歡迎夠”層次”的人. 香港人已經不夠”層次”了…

今日D&G的態度, 根本正正是香港人的日常生活態度, 不過, 現在是到了自己被階級化的的時候, 心裡不好受, 就去高舉 “眾生平等”的旗幟。

還跑去包圍人幫人做宣傳…難道他的生意額會因此下降嗎? 正一傻的嗎9

掉返轉, 如果香港人返到內地, 有個地方只畀香港人用, 唔畀內地人用, 香港人一定會暗爽, 如果內地人用行動去抗議, 香港人仲會笑人、話人冇文化、話人窮

香港人, 今日到你地俾人笑鳥! 因果呀!

The D&G issue does not make any sense.

Why do you think the city has so many luxury brands? And why do Hong Kong people love these brands so much? Why are even second-handed luxury brand stores able to make such huge profit and get listed on the stock exchange? Hong Kong people love luxury brands, we are hypocritical. Deep down, we discriminate against lower classes and proletarians. We love to define others by the brands they were and tell others about our own “class” through luxury brands.

Now D&G tells Hong Kong people: You have to pay for your “class”, we only welcome a certain “class” of people. And Hong Kong people are not in that “class” anymore.

The attitude D&G has is also our attitude. Of course, now we are being discriminated against as a class and we feel bad about it. Only now do we uphold the banner of “equality for all”.

Do you think they will lose money with your flash mob action? Don't be silly, you're just helping D&G to build up its classy brand image?

If Hong Kong people travelled to mainland China, and there was a place where they only welcomed Hong Kong people and excluded mainland people, I am sure that Hong Kong people would be happy deep down their hearts. And if mainlanders protested against it, you would laugh, saying that they are not cultivated and poor.

It's due to your own karma that you are being mocked today.

China 2011: From Jasmine Crackdowns to Grassroots Uprisings

Oiwan Lam — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 15:44:11 +0000

2011 began with a series of crackdowns by the Chinese authorities to prevent the Arab Jasmine Revolution from landing in mainland China. It ended with a series of uprisings in grassroots communities where people have been devastated by corrupt local governments and illegal land acquisitions.

Jasmine crackdowns

The Jasmine uprising in the Arab world has reminded the Chinese people of their own political history in fighting against authoritarian rule. The downfall of Mubarak in Egypt has of course alerted the illegitimate authoritarian regime in China.

Without confronting any real threat, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) started off the year with a heavy-handed crackdown, targeting online opinion leaders and human rights activists in February 2011. Amongst them are blogger-activist Liu Di, prominent artist-activist Ai Weiwei, Sichuan writer Ran Yunfei, Shanghai lawyer Li Tiantian, Sichuan legal activist Li Shuangde and Beijing activist Wang Lihong.

Christian Bale, image from Weibo

Even though the atmosphere has been tense, info-activists continued to campaign for all the political detainees. The Free Chen Guangcheng campaign has been ongoing for months since September 2011, and the most recent development was actor-activist Christian Bale's rough encounter with village guards when he attempted to pay Chen a visit.

Grassroots conflicts

Social conflicts kept bursting in on the grassroots communities throughout 2011. The first case at the beginning of the year was the citizen investigation of the suspected murder of Qian Yunhui, a village head in Zhejiang province who opposed forced land acquisitions in Yueqing county. While official investigation concluded it as an accident, many netizens believed that it was a murder as the county government has too much embedded interests in the developmental projects.

While rural areas were ruined by land seizure, urban areas were threatened by property bubbles. The majority of city dwellers believed that the government should introduce policy to cool down the property market. They displayed their anger towards the unrealistic Communist Party propaganda, which claimed that generous rental subsidies are available to help low-income families in Beijing.

Instead of helping the poor, many cities have adopted the policy to clear the “unwanted” people. The income disparity and social injustice has resulted in bitter resentment among the “unwanted” poor towards the rich and the government officials.

Netizens' reactions on the murder case of Yao Jiaxin reflected the popular feeling. Taxi drivers were among the first social groups to taste the effect of inflation on their living. On the other hand, as the society became more unstable and the economy was taking a downturn, the rich fled, bosses run away and civil servants committed suicides.

Children are the most vulnerable social group in such an unjust society. In the rural areas, 58 million children have been left behind by their parents, who went to the cities in search of jobs. Many became the victims of kidnapping. Most terribly, child rapists are protected by the “underage prostitution law”.

Food safety remains an unresolved problem. Poisonous milk scandals kept popping up throughout the year. Mainland Chinese crossing the border for milk powder has resulted in a shortage in Hong Kong. When Japan was facing a nuclear radiation crisis after the earthquake, Chinese people's immediate response was the panic buying of sea salt. However, the impact of radiation is probably less than that of the chemicals found in watermelons and vinegar.

Overdevelopment and uprisings

Many of the grassroots conflicts were the results of unrestrained development. The impact of the construction of the Three Gorges Dam on the country's environment is yet to be evaluated.

Thousands of people blocked the entrance of an express road. Photos widely circulated in Weibo.

In August, a large scale not-in-my-backyard mobilization took place in Dalian and the local government was forced to accept residents' demand to relocate a chemical factory. The year ended with two successful uprisings in Guangdong province at Wukan and Haimen. Both were against major developmental projects which generated profit by seizing people's land.

China Model

On one hand, the Chinese authority is very proud of the rise of China as a strong nation. A number of movies, such as Beginning of the Great Revival, have been produced to celebrate the 90th anniversary of the CCP.

On the other hand, in order to confront social and political discontents without harsh repressions, the CCP tries to explore different governance models to solve its legitimacy crisis. Some scholars advocated the restoration of Confucianism as the state ideology.

The CCP is unwilling to give up its one-party dictatorship model and introduce political reform. It prefers brainwashing education and red propaganda rather than rational change of the political process, and depends on the stability machine for maintaining social and political order. Thus, rights defense actions were taken as insane, independent candidates' campaigns in local elections were suppressed, micro-blogging platforms were under attack, and activists were subject to daily monitoring.

The China Model seemed to have entered Hong Kong with the visit of China's future premier Li Keqiang in August 2011. It is the first time in the city's history that a citizen was arrested for wearing a political T-shirt.

Geopolitics

The costly space race tells Chinese people and the world that the nation is on the rise. Yet in terms of international politics, some scholars believe that China is being boxed-in geopolitically. The Mekong river massacre and the U.S diplomatic strategy in Asia Pacific have alerted the nationalists of China's marginalized diplomatic position in the world.

However, the imaginary enemy game can never solve the internal social conflicts. Even though some intellectuals may find another revolution too remote and unrealistic, democracy and freedom have definitely become an aspiration of the commons in the year of the 100th anniversary of the Xinhai Revolution.

China: A Guangdong Village on the Verge of a Brutal Crackdown

Oiwan Lam — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 12:50:08 +0000

Since September 2011, hundreds of villagers from Wukan village in Guangdong's Lufeng city have begun demonstrating against illegal land acquisition and last week, armed police entered the village and arrested a number of protest organizers.

Yesterday, it was revealed that a leader of the protesting villagers, Xue Jinbo, was found dead in a police detention center three days after his arrest. Police claimed that he had a heart attack, but his family say Xue was tortured to death. While the villagers are outraged by the suspected murder of Xue and are prepared to carry on struggles with local authorities, many concerned netizens worry that the incident will develop into bloody repression.

According to reports from Hong Kong newspapers, the piece of collective land involved is worth more than RMB 700 million. On September 22, Hong Kong developer Chan Man Ching, along with a large number of local gangsters, forcibly entered the village and beat up the protestors. Thousands of villagers then surrounded the Lufeng county government building on November 21, and local authorities promised villagers that the dispute would be settled village representatives re-elected within 15 days. Below is a short documentary produced by China Sun TV on the Wukan villagers' protests:

However, when the deadline arrive, instead of fulfilling its promise, the local government took action to arrest protest organizers beginning December 3. In response, the villagers placed the village Communist Party Committee office under siege on December 5. On December 10, thousands of villagers blocked the road to the village upon receiving the news that the police would take action in making widespread arrests.

Armed police surrounded the village

Xue Jinbo's photo via the Chinese Human Rights Defenders website

Twitter user @milpitas95035 reported on the situation [zh]:

广东陆丰乌坎村于今天（12月11日）凌晨四点半左右，一千多名全副武装的警察准备再次进村抓捕。村民闻讯敲响铜锣，五千多村民拿起棍棒、农具把守村口，与警察对峙。期间警察发射五十多枚催泪弹和其它弹药，上午7点左右村民被迫撤离村口，之后警察全部撒离。据说同一时间，其他镇发生了游行示威。

Around 4:30 am today (December 11) in Wukan village in Lufeng county, Guangdong province, more than a thousand armed police officers tried to enter the village and arrest villagers. Upon receiving the news, villagers alerted each other, and more than 5,000 of them then took their rods and confronted police. In the process, police fired more than 50 canisters of tear gas. The villagers were forced to retreat at around 7 am, following which the police also left. People heard that there were demonstrations in other surrounding towns.

News of Xue Jinbo's death surfaced at this time. Twitter user @fumanduo helped villagers spread the news via Twitter [zh]:

：【关注乌坎】村民消息：目前薛锦波遗体在海丰殡仪馆，村民看到薛身上多处被打到皮开肉绽，家属希望领回遗体遭到拒绝．目前村外大批警察集结，进出不便．村民正在开会，准备下午冲出乌坎，再次上＃访

[Wukan Concern] Sources from the villagers: Xue Jinbo's body is now at the Hai Feng Funeral Parlor. Villagers found many scars on Xu's body and authorities have rejected Xue's family's demand to reclaim Xue's body. Now a large number of police officers are stationed outside the village and it is very difficult for the villagers to leave. Villagers are having meeting, they plan to break the police blockade and in another attempt to petition their case.

After the meeting, villagers urged friends and extended family members from Lufeng currently away from the village to come home and protect their homeland. Via @fumanduo [zh]:

乌坎人正排队等公安来抓。村民在网上发出紧急通告，呼吁所有陆丰人速回当地保卫家乡http://pic.twitter.com/BON71kH0

Wukan residents are now waiting for the police to make arrests. The villagers urge all people from Lufeng to return home to protect their family and relatives. http://pic.twitter.com/BON71kH0

Villagers also redecorated the village committee building into a funeral parlor (via @yoke1007):

The suspected murder of Xue makes Beijing reporter Liu Xiannan very pessimistic [zh] about the development of the Wukan incident:

薛锦波之死，标志着乌坎理性维权模式的失败与破产。理性与非理性，在强权面前，已皆为绝途。

The death of Xue Jinbo signifies the ultimate defeat of rational protest and defense of people's rights. Rational or not, when confronted with a dictator, there is no way out.

Foreign conspiracy theory again!

Indeed, local media reports are either downplaying the Wukan incident or interpreting it as foreign conspiracy. One bitter peasant writing on Sina Weibo exclaims [zh]:

陸丰政府先斷我們網絡再斷我們糧食。。我們做錯了什麼？要在我們烏坎村貪48億省政府你們就眼睜睜看着一万多人餓死？在外做事的人有家回不得這社會還有天理。。媒體全部听汕尾一句宣告就胡亂報導。記者請用職業道德去現場了解吧。南都，廣州日报，羊城晚报，今日一线们不要用假新闻去迷惑百姓吧

The Lufeng government has cut our Internet connections and our food supply… What have we done to deserve this? The village government has taken RMB 4.8 bln from the Wukan villagers and the provincial government just sits there and watches ten thousand people starve to death? Those who have left home for work cannot return home? What kind of society is this? The media only listens to the Shanwei government's press releases. Please come to Wukan to see for yourself. Southern Metropolis Daily, Guangzhou Daily, Yangcheng Evening News, please do not cheat people with fake news.

Twitter user @pangjiaoming is very angry that Guangdong authority has labelled the incident as foreign conspiracy [zh]:

还没起床拿IPAD看新闻，惊闻广东当局指责乌坎事件有境外势力参与。什么境外势力？不就是浩浩荡荡的民主潮流么！孙文先生之三民诉求，民主、民权、民生一个都没落实好！求求双头鹰老毛子，把中国的领土还回来，把境外势力共产党带回去！

Reading the news in bed on my iPad. So surprised to find out that Guangdong authorities claim that there was overseas intervention in the Wukan incident. What kind of overseas intervention are they talking about? Democracy is a trend! The three demands of Democracy, Rights and Livelihood made by Sun Yatsen have still not been fulfilled. Please return China back to the people and kick out the real foreign power—the Communists—out of the Chinese territory.

Writer He Sanwei from Sina Weibo points out [zh]:

就算是“境外反动势力插手”了，也不是原罪，还要看做的什么知道吗？今天的中国不是还派出部队去插手外国，还称为维和不是吗？今天的中国政府不就是境外反动势力插手建立的吗？今天的联合国人权公约和政治公约，不都是由境外反动势力发起，中国作为联合国成员国最后承认和签署的吗？郑雁雄书记你说呢？

Even if there is foreign intervention, it's not an unforivable sin. We have to look into the nature of the incident. We also send our troops overseas to intervene, and that's for peace, isn't it? Our current government is also an establishment of foreign power, isn't it? Today the United Nations' covenants on Human and Political Rights are all initiated by foreign powers, and isn't China a member of United Nations? Shanwei Party Secretary Zhen Yanxiong, what do you have to say about this?

Political news commentator Zhu Zhiyong rightly points out [zh] that the rhetoric of “foreign intervention” is to justify a brutal crackdown:

广东陆丰群体事件公开打出反对独裁口号，为大陆群体事件历史上第一次，无疑有深刻政治背景。目前在阴谋论定调下抓捕行动正在进行中。汕尾市委书记郑雁雄特别强调，有境外势力插手。既然如此，中国公众需要真相，不得含糊其辞，是哪个国家，什么势力！怎样插手？用了什么手段？请郑雁雄书记明白交代！！

The mass incident in Lufeng has seen open demand calling for the end of dictatorship. This is the first mass incident that has put forward a political agenda. The conspiracy theory is to justify arrest actions. Shanwei City Party Secretary Zheng Yanxiong stresses that overseas power have intervened in the incident. The Chinese public should demand the truth and a clear explanation. Which country? What kind of power? How? By what means? Zheng Yanxiong, please give us an answer!

Hong Kong: LGBT Come Out Video

Oiwan Lam — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 02:05:50 +0000

“I am who I am”, produced by an activist group, Nutongxueshe, is a series of video for the LGBT community in Hong Kong to come out and speak about their experience, very often painful because of discrimination and bullying. (via acopy.net)