Hong Kong protests Chinese extradition bill

[asianobserve]

One thing they could do is recognise ROC as the rightful government and merge with Taiwan. That would bring them under US protection.

It's a moonshot. UK is now too dependent on China.

 

[Armand2REP]

It's a moonshot. UK is now too dependent on China.

I was talking about HK recognising Taiwan as the true China.

 

[Illusive]

Chan Tong-kai: Hong Kong releases murder suspect who sparked protest crisis

Hong Kong has released the murder suspect whose case led to plans to change extradition rules which then triggered the city's mass protests.

Chan Tong-kai is accused of murdering his pregnant girlfriend in Taiwan last year before fleeing back to Hong Kong.

But Hong Kong and Taiwan do not have an extradition treaty, and his case was cited when the government proposed amending the law.

He was in jail for withdrawing money from her credit card after she died.

Walking free on Wednesday after 19 months in prison, the 20-year old apologised to the victim's family for the great "pain and agony" he caused them.

"I am willing to surrender myself," he said, adding he was willing to "go back to Taiwan to face the trial and serve the sentence".

Hong Kong and Taipei have clashed though over how he should be transferred to face the murder charges. It is unclear what the next steps will be.

While Hong Kong said Mr Chan was free to go to Taiwan and surrender himself, Taiwan cited security concerns and wants to send officers to escort him - a proposal that Hong Kong has rejected.

The proposed extradition bill would have allowed Hong Kong to extradite criminal suspects to places it doesn't have an extradition treaty with, including mainland China, Taiwan and Macau.

Critics of the planned law feared that extradition to mainland China could subject people to arbitrary detention and unfair trials.

The controversial bill was formally withdrawn on Wednesday.


After the bill sparked city-wide protests, the government announced in July that it would suspend the bill.

The formal withdrawal could only take place after parliament resumed in October.

Last week, parliament proceedings were interrupted when opposition lawmakers heckled Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam.

Although the Hong Kong protests started over the extradition bill, they have since widened to call for full democracy and less interference from Beijing.

 

[Jameson Emoni]

I was talking about HK recognising Taiwan as the true China.

Taiwan still maintain its claim as true representative of the Chinese people. So there should not be any legal issue with this proposal.

 

[Illusive]

OK.... a protester in Hong Kong just showed other protesters how to use a leaf blower against tear gas. Blow that shit right back on the 12 https://t.co/DpXMOtTPpQ

 

[Illusive]

Xiaomi, Huawei and Lenovo stores trashed amid ongoing Hong Kong protests.

Protesters are targeting Chinese tech after previously going after brands associated with mainland China or seen as favoring the mainland market.

 

[Illusive]

An election candidate was arrested and tortured yesterday. How can we accept atrocity like this happening in HK?
(Source: RFA) https://t.co/odWZay3RQI

 

[Jameson Emoni]

An election candidate was arrested and tortured yesterday. How can we accept atrocity like this happening in HK?
(Source: RFA) https://t.co/odWZay3RQI

Western politicians only care about the "human rights" of Islamist terrorists. They do not care about the human rights of normal folks.

 

[Illusive]

Scores Injured, One Critical in Chaotic Weekend of Hong Kong Protests

In one bloody incident outside a mall in the eastern suburb of Taikoo Shing on Sunday, a man with a knife slashed several people and bit off part of a politician's ear.

Hong Kong: Scores of people were injured in Hong Kong during a chaotic weekend of anti-government protests that left one man in a critical condition, authorities said on Monday, as China called for a tougher stance to end months of unrest.

Riot police stormed several shopping malls packed with families and children on Sunday, following one of the worst days of violence in weeks as police fired tear gas, rubber bullets and a water cannon at crowds of black-clad demonstrators across the Chinese-ruled financial hub on Saturday.

In one bloody incident outside a mall in the eastern suburb of Taikoo Shing on Sunday, a man with a knife slashed several people and bit off part of a politician's ear.

The wounded included a man believed to be the knife-wielder, whom protesters had beaten with sticks. Police said they arrested three men involved, including the suspected 48-year old assailant.


The city's Hospital Authority told Reuters one person was in a critical condition, with two others serious, among a total of 30 injuries from Sunday alone. Local media reported a life-threatening injury was sustained by a male student who fell from a height, but details of the incident remained unclear.

The head of the boy's university called on authorities to investigate the matter in a heated dialogue with students on Monday evening.

Twelve police officers were also injured during weekend clashes, with more than 300 people ranging from 14 to 54 years of age arrested between Friday and Sunday, police said.

While Hong Kong and its many businesses function normally during the week, many protests have sprung up spontaneously at weekends over the past five months.

Pro-democracy protesters are campaigning against what they see as Chinese meddling with the freedoms promised when the former British colony returned to Chinese rule in 1997. China denies doing so, and has blamed Western countries for stirring up trouble.

Chinese state media called on Monday for a tougher line against the protesters who vandalised the local offices of state-run Xinhua news agency and other buildings, saying the violence damaged the city's rule of law.

More demonstrations are planned this week as the protesters keep up pressure for demands that include an independent inquiry into police behaviour and universal suffrage.

"We really see that people are very heavy-hearted. They don't know what is going to happen tonight or maybe the next weekend. And there is a lot of worry," pro-democracy lawmaker Charles Mok told Reuters.

'V for vendetta'

Protesters have circulated plans on social media to mark Guy Fawkes Day on Tuesday by putting on now-banned face masks in areas around Hong Kong.

Many people taking to the streets in recent weeks have worn the white, smiling Guy Fawkes masks made popular by anti-establishment hackers and by the film "V for Vendetta".

The masks have also become common at protests globally, including in Britain and across the United States.

Hong Kong's embattled leader Carrie Lam invoked colonial-era emergency powers last month for the first time in more than 50 years, banning face masks in a move to quell the protests.

Protesters have largely ignored the ruling and worn masks.

The protests have divided Hong Kong and undermined its economy, with the police coming in for particular scrutiny.

Police cancelled a planned press conference on Monday after several journalists from the public broadcaster and other local media turned up wearing helmets with signs that said "investigate police brutality" and "stop police lies", and then refused to leave when asked by officials.

"We are not protesting...We are just using our clothes...to urge the police to change and stop the violence against the journalists," said Ronson Chan of online news site The Stand News. Police said the journalists' actions were "disrespectful" and "deprived the public of access to important information".

Local media associations have condemned what they describe as a heavy-handed approach by the police towards journalists, while officers have said they are responding to an escalating cycle of violence in five months of protests.

Protesters smashed doors and windows and threw petrol bombs at Xinhua's office on Saturday in some of the worst violence in weeks. They also set fire to metro stations and vandalised buildings, including an outlet of U.S. coffee chain Starbucks.

The city's Foreign Correspondents' Club expressed grave concern at the attack on Xinhua, stating that news organisations and journalists must be able to work in Hong Kong free from fear of attack and intimidation.

Mainland businesses, including banks or companies seen as supportive of China's ruling Communist Party, have often been targeted by protesters.

Police said the protests have been a "man-made disaster" for the city with some 45 kilometres (28 miles) of roadside railings dismantled, and 145 rail stations vandalised.

"Rioters' destructive acts serve no other purpose than to vent their anger at grievances real and imagined," said Chief Superintendent Tse Chun-chung on Monday.

"Continuing this rampage is a lose-lose situation for Hong Kong. Everyone is a loser. Please don’t let violence take over our daily life. Everyone deserves freedom from fear."

 

[Illusive]

Mainland Chinese are being attacked in Hong Kong

Afew days ago, Huang Qixuan, a 21-year-old from mainland China who is studying accountancy in Hong Kong, was walking through his campus, talking to his father by phone. He passed a black-clad local student who was holding a placard in support of the pro-democracy unrest that has racked the city for nearly five months. “It’s chaotic,” he said to his father in Mandarin, the mainland’s common tongue. Incensed, the local shouted into Mr Huang’s face in Cantonese, the language of most Hong Kongers. “Liberate Hong Kong!” the protester kept on yelling as he followed Mr Huang. “Revolution of our times!” chanted passers-by, encouraging the pursuer.

Communist Party-controlled newspapers in Hong Kong say the city is in the grip of a “black terror”, a reference to the protesters’ adopted colour. Mr Huang agrees, and has plenty of evidence to confirm his anxiety. On WeChat, a messaging app used by many mainlanders in Hong Kong, who include around 12,000 university students, videos have gone viral of attacks on people from China’s interior. One such incident, on November 2nd, involved a woman who was accosted by protesters in a touristy part of the city after she allegedly took close-up shots of people in masks (the government recently banned the wearing of them by demonstrators). During the encounter the woman’s face was splattered with a sticky black substance. On the next day a mainlander shouted “We are all Chinese, long live China!” inside a shopping mall. He then fled to escape an angry crowd, who swore and threw objects at a fireman trying to shield him.

 

[Illusive]

It is a pregnant woman whom they pepper sprayed and forced to the ground!! Outrage!!! https://t.co/tuRr3PDFug

 

[Craigs]

It's a moonshot. UK is now too dependent on China.

For what?????? - UK is one of the few countries which is self sufficient in almost every resource and for the rest they have Europe.

 

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'On Brink of Collapse': Hong Kong Streets Abuzz as Pro-democracy Rallies 'Blossom Everywhere'

The new phase in the crisis, which has forced schools and shopping malls to close as well as the shutdown of large chunks of the vital train network, prompted police to warn on Tuesday the city was 'on the brink of total collapse'.

Hong Kong: Pro-democracy protesters stepped up Wednesday a "blossom everywhere" campaign of roadblocks and vandalism across Hong Kong that has crippled the international financial hub this week and ignited some of the worst violence in five months of unrest.

The new phase in the crisis, which has forced schools and shopping malls to close as well as the shutdown of large chunks of the vital train network, prompted police to warn on Tuesday the city was "on the brink of total collapse".

China, facing the biggest challenge to its rule of the territory since it was handed back by the British in 1997, has insisted it will not buckle to the pressure and warned of tougher security measures.

On Wednesday, commuters across many parts of the city woke to the increasingly familiar scenario of roads choked with bricks, bicycles, couches and other materials that had been laid out by the protesters overnight to block traffic.

Various lines on the subway, used by more than half of the city's 7.5 million people daily, were also suspended due to vandalism, forcing many workers to stay at home. Meanwhile, masked protesters dressed in their signature black were locked in a series of tense standoffs at university campuses following battles on Tuesday that continued through the night with police firing tear gas and rubber bullets.

The chaos was part of the largely anonymous protest movement's new strategy of "blossom everywhere", in which small groups of people target as many parts of the city as possible to cause maximum disruption and stretch police resources.

Protesters had until this week largely confined their actions to evenings and the weekends. The campaign began with an effort to shut down the train network and enforce a city-wide strike on Monday. The already tense atmosphere escalated on Monday when a police officer shot an unarmed 21-year-old protester, leaving him in a critical condition.

It was only the third confirmed time a police officer had shot someone with live bullets since the unrest began in June. A masked person on Monday then doused a 57-year-old man, who had been arguing with protesters, with a flammable liquid and set him on fire. He was also hospitalised in a critical condition.

The protest movement has been fuelled by fears that China is choking the liberties and freedoms Hong Kong is meant to have under the terms of the handover deal with the British. Protesters are demanding the right to freely elect their leaders.

But instead of offering concessions, China has responded with ominous warnings that it is prepared to further curb freedoms, and that it wants tougher security measures in Hong Kong. On Tuesday the People's Daily, the mouthpiece of China's ruling Communist Party, warned that local district elections due to be held on November 24 may be cancelled if the protesters do not back down.

"Only by supporting the police force to decisively put down the riots can (Hong Kong) return to peace and hold fair elections, to help Hong Kong start again," the commentary said. Other powerful arms of the Chinese state media have also again raised the prospect this week of the Chinese military being deployed in Hong Kong to end the crisis.

Still, China is not yet prepared to take such drastic action as military intervention as it plays a longer game of weakening and intimidating the protest movement, according to Ben Bland, Sydney-based director of the Southeast Asia Project at the Lowy Institute, a policy think-tank.

"It still seems, as far as we can tell, that the most likely response is going to continue to be led by the Hong Kong authorities and the Hong Kong police," Bland told AFP on Wednesday. But the events this week have deepened concerns that Hong Kong's police cannot solve the crisis, and that a political solution must be found.

The police force's spokesman, Kong Wing-cheung, appeared to echo those fears on Tuesday. "Hong Kong's rule of law has been pushed to the brink of total collapse," Kong said.

 

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Hong Kong protests: foreign students start to leave as unrest shifts to universities

Danish university chief tells 36 students to return home as several protesters injured in violence.

Dozens of foreign students have been urged to leave Hong Kong after another night of clashes left several people seriously injured.

A worker for the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department, struck by an object thrown by protesters earlier on Wednesday, was in critical condition, according to the government. A 15-year-old believed to have been hit in the head by a tear-gas canister has reportedly suffered a skull fracture.

A man dressed in black and around the age of 30 was found dead in Tsuen Wan in Hong Kong’s New Territories, according to police who said he appeared to have fallen from a building.

On Thursday, foreign students including mainland Chinese students were evacuating Hong Kong after several universities emerged as battlegrounds as protesters tried to prevent police from storming their campuses.

Several Nordic students at Hong Kong Baptist University were being moved after anti-government demonstrators moved on to its grounds, and the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) urged its 36 students in Hong Kong to return home.

Student Elina Neverdal Hjoennevaag told the Norwegian broadcaster NRK on Wednesday they were being sent to a hotel, adding: “I don’t really know what is happening. I must pack.”

She said she and several other exchange students were told to pack and move away, saying: “People walked out with their suitcases. Many cried.”

The Norwegian foreign ministry said on its website that “students should continuously evaluate campus safety if teaching is interrupted due to protests”.

Anders Overgaard Bjarklev, the head of DTU, said the decision to move came after some of the riots shifted to the campuses and “some of our students have been forced to move from their dormitories because they were put on fire”.

DTU would also resolve “any academic challenges associated with the interrupted course”.

Australia’s foreign affairs minister, Marise Payne, issued a statement calling on police and protesters to “exercise restraint and take steps to de-escalate tensions”.

“It is essential that the police respond proportionately to protests,” Payne said in a statement.

Police on Tuesday raided the Chinese University of Hong Kong, setting off violent clashes. The university remained barricaded by demonstrators on Thursday, with roadblocks and brick walls at the schools various entrances. Protesters also occupied a bridge that leads into the campus.

Police have accused the university of being a “manufacturing base for petrol bombs and a refuge for rioters and criminals” after some protesters fired burning arrows – taken from the university sports centre – at officers and threw 400 petrol bombs. Police fired more than 1,500 rounds of tear gas and more than 1,300 rubber bullets at the demonstrators. The city was paralysed, with much of its public transport suspended and all universities closed.

On Thursday the Hong Kong Education Bureau said all schools would suspend classes from Friday to Sunday due to transportation disruptions. Several universities have cancelled classes for the rest of the semester or moved lectures online

Hong Kong’s Education Bureau has suspended classes at primary and secondary schools for Thursday because of violence and described the situation in the city as “chilling”. The bureau also appealed for “school children to stay at home, not to hang around in the streets, to stay away from danger, and not to participate in illegal activities”.

Mainland Chinese students have also fled the unrest, taking advantage of a program that offers them a week of free accommodation in hotels and hostels in the neighbouring city of Shenzhen.

Chinese media reported that one hostel had received more than 80 applications for rooms by Wednesday morning.

The Beijing Evening News reported that protesters had broken into the dormitories of mainland students, spray-painting insults on walls and banging on doors.

Hong Kong police said on Wednesday that they had helped a group of mainland students leave their campus after it was barricaded by demonstrators.

Taiwan’s representative office in Hong Kong has reportedly helped 71 Taiwanese students return home.

The Taiwanese president, Tsai Ing-wen, called on Hong Kong’s government to cease “acts of repression,” saying such acts are threatening freedom and the rule of law.

Commenting on the police assault on students at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Tsai tweeted that police in Taiwan used similar tactics during the years of martial law, which was lifted in 1987. She wrote: “Our dark past, which we have worked so hard to put behind us, has become the present reality for Hong Kong.”

China’s foreign ministry meanwhile again warned the US not to interfere with Hong Kong’s affairs, saying the city was part of China. Spokesman Geng Shuang said at a daily briefing on Wednesday that members of the US Senate should stop trying to promote bills on human rights or democracy in Hong Kong. “I want to reiterate that Hong Kong is China’s Hong Kong. Hong Kong affairs are purely China’s internal affairs and cannot be interfered by any external forces,” he said.

 

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China Army In Hong Kong For 1st Time Since Pro-Democracy Protests Began

It was also the first time in over a year that the PLA local garrison has been involved in the public community work.

Beijing:

China on Saturday deployed its troops in Hong Kong for the first time since the unprecedented pro-democracy protests began in the former British colony more than five months ago over a proposed extradition law, with soldiers in plain clothes clearing the roadblocks.

Soldiers from the Hong Kong Garrison of People's Liberation Army (PLA) -- the world's largest military -- have been deployed for the first time in more than five months of civil unrest in Hong Kong, as dozens marched from their Kowloon garrison to help clear roadblocks, Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported.

It was also the first time in over a year that the PLA local garrison has been involved in the public community work.

The soldiers, mostly in green T-shirts and black shorts, and carrying red buckets, ran out of the PLA's Kowloon Tong barracks at about 4 PM to clear obstacles on Renfrew Road, near Baptist University's campus, the report said.

A soldier said their action had nothing to do with the Hong Kong government.

"We initiated this! Stopping violence and ending chaos is our responsibility," he said, quoting a phrase coined by President Xi Jinping.

Firefighters and police officers also joined the soldiers.

Earlier, Hong Kong Secretary for Security John Lee Ka-chiu said the PLA could freely decide on whether to send soldiers to perform volunteer services outside military sites and the local government had no record of how many times this has happened.

In October last year, more than 400 soldiers were sent in batches to Hong Kong's country parks to help remove trees that had been uprooted during Typhoon Mangkhut.

China earlier said under Article 14 of the city's Garrison Law and Basic Law -- the city's mini-constitution, the PLA must not interfere in local affairs but troops can be called out to help with disaster relief if requested by the local government.

Such a request has never been made since the city returned to the Chinese rule 22 years ago.

On Thursday, Xi Jinping broke his silence over Hong Kong's unprecedented pro-democracy protests threatening China's control over the former British colony, saying the most pressing task at present was to bring violence and chaos to an end and restore order.

He made the comments at the 11th BRICS Summit in Brasilia, China's state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

Hong Kong is rocked by unprecedented pro-democracy protests for over five months and in the past few weeks they grew violent, bringing the international financial centre virtually to a grinding halt.

The protests which began over a proposed extradition law by the Hong Kong administration sparked fear of extradition of locals to the Chinese mainland for prosecution. It later turned into a major pro-democracy movement with demands to elect their local officials without the Chinese interference.

The protestors, mainly youth, are demanding pro-China Chief Executive Carrie Lam's resignation, inquiry into police brutalities and universal franchise of ''one person one vote'' with freedom for all the locals to contest elections for the local legislature.

Xi Jinping said the continuous radical violent activities in Hong Kong seriously trampled the rule of law and the social order, seriously disturb Hong Kong's prosperity and stability, and seriously challenge the ''one country, two systems'' bottom line, the Xinhua report said.

"We will continue to firmly support the chief executive in leading the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government to govern in accordance with the law, firmly support the Hong Kong police in strictly enforcing the law, and firmly support the Hong Kong judicial bodies in severely punishing the violent criminals in accordance with the law," the Chinese President said.

The Chinese government has unswerving determination to protect national sovereignty, security and development interests, implement ''one country, two systems'' policy and oppose any external force in interfering in Hong Kong's affairs, Xi Jinping said.

This is the first time Xi Jinping, regarded as the most powerful leader since Mao Zedong, spoke directly about the situation in Hong Kong, the former British colony handed over to Beijing in 1997.

Xi Jinping currently heads the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC), the military besides the Presidency with prospects of a lifelong tenure in power.

Last month during his visit to Nepal, Mr Xi was quoted as saying that any attempts to drive a wedge between China and its territories will "end in crushed bodies and shattered bones".

He, however, did not name any particular province or region.

Nepal borders Tibet from where many Tibetans crossover to Dharamsala to visit the Dalai Lama.

"And any external forces backing such attempts dividing China will be deemed by the Chinese people as pipe-dreaming!" Xi Jinping added.

 

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US legislation on Hong Kong: What does it mean?

The "Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act", which the Senate passed unanimously on Tuesday, would put the former British colony's special treatment by the United States under tighter scrutiny linked to Hong Kong's autonomy from Beijing.

SHANGHAI: The U.S. House of Representatives has passed legislation to back protesters in Hong Kong and send a warning to China about human rights, sending two bills to the White House where President Donald Trump is expected to sign them into law.

Mass protests for more democracy and autonomy have roiled Hong Kong for more than five months, with escalating violence and fears that China will ratchet up its response to stop the civil disobedience.

The "Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act", which the Senate passed unanimously on Tuesday, would put the former British colony's special treatment by the United States under tighter scrutiny linked to Hong Kong's autonomy from Beijing.

A second bill, which the Senate also approved unanimously on Tuesday, would ban the export of certain crowd-control munitions to Hong Kong authorities.

What next?
The two bills have been sent to the White House, where U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to sign them into law.

Once that happens, the State Department would be required to certify at least once a year that Hong Kong retains enough autonomy to qualify for the special U.S. trading consideration that helped it become a world financial center.

Officials responsible for human rights violations in Hong Kong could also be sanctioned under the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act.

While many see the act as symbolic, it could alter the nature of relations between the United States and Hong Kong.

Beijing promised Hong Kong a "high degree of autonomy" for 50 years when it regained sovereignty over the city in 1997, but protesters say freedoms have been steadily eroded.

U.S. policy toward Hong Kong has been underpinned by a 1992 law called the United States-Hong Kong Policy Act, which affords the territory special status as separate from China in trade, transport and other areas.

Under the 1992 law, the president can issue an executive order suspending elements of Hong Kong's special status if the president determines that the territory is "not sufficiently autonomous" from Beijing.

The Human Rights and Democracy Act would amend that law, putting Hong Kong's autonomous status under closer scrutiny.

The other bill would ban the export to Hong Kong of items such as tear gas, pepper spray, rubber bullets and stun guns.

The passage of the two bills by the Senate and House has angered Beijing, which denounced the legislation as gross interference and violation of international law. If they become law, tension between Washington and Beijing is likely to increase, casting a shadow over negotiations to end their trade war.

What effect might the legislation have?
From a business perspective, one of the most important elements of Hong Kong's special status has been that it is considered a separate customs and trading zone from China.

That has meant, for instance, that trade war tariffs don't apply to exports from Hong Kong.

If Hong Kong becomes just another Chinese port, companies that rely on its role as a middleman, or for trans-shipping, are likely to take their business elsewhere.

Trade between Hong Kong and the United States was estimated to be worth $67.3 billion in 2018, with the United States running a $33.8 billion surplus - its biggest with any country or territory, according to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.

The American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong has said that anything that changes the status of Hong Kong "would have a chilling effect not only on U.S. trade and investment in Hong Kong but would send negative signals internationally about Hong Kong's trusted position in the global economy".

 

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The Chinese troops in Hong Kong and what t ..

Read more at:
http://m.timesofindia.com/articlesh...ofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

 

[Illusive]

Five years ago, we lost. All of us.
We lost friends.
We lost family.
We lost a part of ourselves.
Today, we have a chance to take it all back. You know your teams, you know your missions. https://t.co/pHERsnl3vl


No mistakes. No do-overs. Most of us are going somewhere we know, that doesn't mean we should know what to expect.
Be careful. Look out for each other. This is the fight of our lives.
And we're going to win.
Whatever it takes. Good luck.

 

[Jameson Emoni]

The world is heading in a very interesting direction. It seems like China is no longer happy being a munna of The Cartel. This means we are heading in a direction which will see confrontation between China and the US. I was thinking that the current tension between China and the US is temporary in nature and will probably subside once Trump exits the office. I am not too sure though and I think the tension we see may transform into a cold war like sate.

Russians know that they do not have a realistic chance of challenging the US for a number one spot due to their small population size. France is happy with the status quo that exists today and faces the similar lack of human resources that Russia faces. China on the other hand has ample population and is quite ambitious.

Russia is not going to challenge the US for a number one spot but it will also not play a poodle. This is evident from their deployment of hypersonic missiles that can penetrate US/NATO air defenses. Interestingly enough, tension between the US and Russia skyrocketed after this deployment.

Now the question arises, how will US balance Russia and China, and possibly India?

 

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Hong Kong’s democracy forces rebuke China with huge election win

The vote came at a time of unprecedented political polarization in the city, with divisions hardening as the protests become more disruptive and the government refuses to compromise.

Hong Kong residents handed an overwhelming victory to pro-democracy candidates in a vote for local district councils on Sunday, a stunning repudiation of the city’s Beijing-backed government after months of increasingly violent protests seeking meaningful elections.

Pro-democracy candidates won 86% seats of the 444 seats counted as of 9 a.m., official results showed, with eight seats still up for grabs. In the last election in 2015, they had won about a quarter of all seats. The pro-government camp won about 12% of seats this time around, versus 65% four years ago. The vote saw record turnout of 71%, with more than 2.94 million people casting ballots -- roughly double the number in the previous election.

The vote came at a time of unprecedented political polarization in the city, with divisions hardening as the protests become more disruptive and the government refuses to compromise. While the district councils are considered the lowest rung of Hong Kong’s government, the results will add pressure on the government to meet demands including an independent inquiry into police abuses and the ability to nominate and elect the city’s leader, including one who would stand up to Beijing.

Hong Kong stocks climbed Monday, with the Hang Seng Index rising 1.7%, opening above its 100-day moving average. The gain was led by developers and other stocks seen as most sensitive to the demonstrations. Analysts and investors also said the moves showed relief that the Sunday vote went ahead peacefully.


The district councilors have few real powers, mostly advising the chief executive on matters like fixing up parks and organizing community activities. Most importantly, they help appoint 117 of the 1,200 electors who select the chief executive, which would give pro-democracy forces more choice over candidates who must still be approved by Beijing.

The result will make it harder for establishment forces to put in their preferred candidate in the next race for chief executive, said James Tien, a former pro-establishment lawmaker.

“It will be very difficult for government to manage a win, and then I think it’s more difficult to govern right now,” he told Bloomberg Television on Monday. If the violence dies down after the vote, he said, the government will have “no excuse” not to appoint a commission of inquiry by January.

The vote shows dissatisfaction with Chief Executive Carrie Lam’s government following months of protests triggered by legislation allowing extraditions to mainland China, which has since been withdrawn. Unhappiness with the administration rose to 80% from just 40% a year ago -- well before the unrest began -- according to surveys by the Hong Kong Public Opinion Research Institute. Lam’s popularity has fallen to record lows as the protests evolved into a wider pushback against Beijing’s grip.

Hong Kong “is at the precipice” and could fall off if authorities don’t heed the message of the vote, said Steve Tsang, the director of the China Institute at London’s School of Oriental and African Studies and the author of several books on Hong Kong.

“An overwhelming majority of voters have sent a clear signal: they want their Hong Kong back,” Tsang said. “It’s now time for the government in Hong Kong to hear what people have said and use this electoral result and the way this election has happened as a basis to work for a political solution.”


The vote has been closely watched around the world, particularly as U.S. lawmakers look to support the protesters while President Donald Trump seeks to finalize a phase one trade deal with China. Trump on Friday declined to say whether he would sign a bill that passed Congress with near-unanimous support, saying he supports both the demonstrators and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Elizabeth Warren, a leading Democratic candidate for president, said the vote sent a “powerful message that they want to keep their democracy -- and Beijing must respect that.”

Among the early winners were Civil Human Rights Front organizer Jimmy Sham, who was previously hospitalized after he was attacked by hammer-wielding thugs. Starry Lee, chairwoman of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, the city’s largest pro-Beijing party, won her re-election even though many other pro-establishment figures lost.

“The high turnout rate did benefit the pro-democracy camp,” said pro-democracy candidate Kelvin Lam, who won after standing in for activist Joshua Wong, who was banned by the government from participating. “The result is like a referendum of the current administration, like a confidence vote.”

The election unfolded peacefully despite concerns it could be delayed or disrupted by violence following unrest in the leadup, with voters facing unusually long lines at polling stations across the city. Its elections have typically been plagued by low voter turnout and aren’t hugely competitive, compared with those for the Hong Kong’s more powerful Legislative Council.

“I came out to vote because of the current situation in society now,” said Ken Lam, 19, a student and first-time voter. “The government is ignoring voices in the public. Policy-making lacks transparency in every aspect.”