Frank Ching is a Hong Kong-based journalist.
Hong Kong’s government is in crisis mode, and things are only getting worse.
Demonstrations over a since-suspended bill that would have allowed Hong Kong to extradite people to China show no sign of abating, as the administration refuses to fully withdraw the legislation and protesters make more and more demands. Violence continues to erupt; on Sunday, while anti-China demonstrators staged another massive rally on Hong Kong Island, a mob of suspected triad gangsters attacked anyone wearing black – the colour worn by protesters – in the border town of Yuen Long. About 45 people were injured, including journalists and a legislator, with one person still in critical condition.
And, through it all, the beleaguered government continues to get even the routine and symbolic things wrong.
Demonstrations over a since-suspended bill that would have allowed Hong Kong to extradite people to China show no sign of abating.Billy H.C. Kwok/Getty Images
Take, for instance, a Canada Day reception in late June to celebrate the 152nd anniversary of Confederation and, coincidentally, the 22nd anniversary of Hong Kong’s unification with the People’s Republic of China. Appearances at such diplomatic events are rotated among the top four officials in Hong Kong – the Chief Executive, the Chief Secretary, the Financial Secretary and the Secretary for Justice – and this was Secretary for Justice Teresa Cheng’s turn to be billed as the guest of honour. But she failed to show up for the event, and didn’t notify Jeff Nankivell, Canada’s consul-general, until after the reception had begun.
Perhaps, that was understandable: That day, June 27, her office was literally under siege, with hundreds of protesters camped outside urging Ms. Cheng not to prosecute those who had been arrested since June 9, when a million people took to the streets to oppose the extradition bill. Ms. Cheng, who had strongly supported the bill put forward by Chief Executive Carrie Lam, declined to meet the protesters.
While the support rating of Ms. Lam has fallen to lower than that of any other chief executive since the handover in 1997, that of the Justice Secretary has dropped even more. According to a survey taken during the week after protesters stormed the legislative council building July 1, Ms. Lam’s approval rating was at 33.4 per cent, and Ms. Cheng’s was 21.6 per cent, with 68 per cent of respondents opposed to her remaining in office. Similarly, only 21 per cent of respondents wanted Secretary for Security John Lee to remain. Ms. Cheng and Mr. Lee were the two officials responsible for shepherding the bill through the legislature.
Protesters hit the national emblem with eggs on Sunday.Chris McGrath/Getty Images
Almost anywhere else, a government with such numbers would fall, or at least the key officials would resign. In Hong Kong, however, things aren’t so straightforward. The Chief Executive is appointed by Beijing and, according to media reports, the Chinese government has rejected her offer to resign, telling her to remain in office and clean up the mess she made.
It’s increasingly clear that the Lam administration may not be up to that task. Police morale has become a grave concern; while protest marches are still peaceful, they are often followed by clashes between protesters and the police, often leading to injuries on both sides. The Junior Police Officers Association, which represents the bulk of the 31,000-strong police force, has said in a statement that management “should not assign them tasks that may result in injuries or deploy them to dangerous places to minimize their occupational risks.” Otherwise, the association said, it would “seek legal advice to find solutions that will better guarantee the safety of officers.”
And when Sunday’s protesters demanded an inquiry into the background and reasons for the increasing clashes between police and demonstrators – a proposal supported by former chief justice Andrew Li – Ms. Lam rejected the idea. Her closest advisers have said in recent days that the Chief Executive would make no more concessions; evidently, that’s how an inquiry to seek the truth is considered by Ms. Lam.
Increasingly, the Lam administration is finding itself caught between Hong Kong protesters and the Chinese government. On Sunday night, some protesters demonstrated outside China’s Liaison Office, throwing eggs and paint at the building. The next day, the Chief Executive said the act of defacing the national emblem on the building was a challenge to national sovereignty and “touches the bottom line of ‘one country, two systems.' ”
This is an impossible dance for a government to continue to perform – especially when it has largely misstepped to this point.
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