Save Hong Kong from violence

by Liang Xizhi and Gui Tao

 It was raining heavily in London on Sunday 18^th August. Yet for thousands of overseas Chinese and Chinese students attending the lunchtime rally to voice out their demand for peace and stability in Hong Kong, such bad weather would never sink their passions.

Waving the Chinese national flag and the flag of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), the crowd, sang the Chinese national anthem along the way from Chinatown to Trafalgar Square, and expressed their firm objection to violence and their strong support for the Hong Kong government and the Hong Kong police.

"I love Hong Kong, I love China" and "One China," chanted the crowd in Mandarin, Cantonese and English while holding placards written with slogans including "Stop Violence" and "Save Hong Kong”.

The weather cleared when participants of the peaceful rally, young and old, arrived at Trafalgar Square. They sang I Love You, China, My Chinese Heart and Pearl of the Orient among many other Chinese songs to show their solidarity and unity.

"We want to take today's opportunity to express our dissatisfaction with 'Hong Kong independence' and violence," said Zhang Yanqian, a student from Kingston University who participated in the rally.

"We speak the same language and keep the same blood. We should unite and make the motherland prosperous and strong," he said.

Zhang Feng, the chair of the Chinese Students and Scholars Association UK (CSSAUK), said the association “strongly supports the HKSAR government and police and firmly supports the one-China policy”.

The CSSAUK has called on Chinese students studying in Britain to remain calm and rationally patriotic to ensure their own safety, Zhang said.

The rally, co-hosted by the London Chinatown Chinese Association, the Hong Kong New Territories Heung Yee Kuk Overseas Liaison Office and more than 100 overseas Chinese communities in Britain, lasted for about an hour.

The rally was called to refute the lies of the “Hong Kong independence” organisations, to tell the outside world that Hong Kong is a democratic and free society, to express support for the Hong Kong government, and to oppose the violent protests over the past two months, said Chu Ting Tang, the chair of the London Chinatown Chinese Association.

For overseas Chinese Seuisang Gong, Sunday's rally was a good chance to show his support for the Hong Kong government and the Hong Kong police.

The Hong Kong government and the Hong Kong police should "unite and work together" to "implement the law and deal with all illegal things in accordance with the law," Gong said.

"I hope that the riots will be settled as soon as possible and these mobs will be brought to justice. We hope that the government can restore Hong Kong's social order as soon as possible and make people's livelihood more peaceful. I believe this is the most important thing," Gong said.

Xinhua

A Promising Future for Hong Kong

Liu Xiaoming welcomes the guests

By New Worker correspondent

 

NCP leader Andy Brooks joined hundreds of other guests at the Chinese embassy this week at a reception called to mark the 20th Anniversary of the Return of Hong Kong to People’s China.

The Chinese ambassador, Liu Xiaoming, said that the end of British rule “was a landmark in China's modern history. It was a long-cherished wish coming true for generations of Chinese people, including compatriots in Hong Kong.

“It was a significant achievement that left its mark in the history of the Chinese nation.

“It was a pride for each and every Chinese to see Hong Kong's bauhinia flag side-by-side with the five-star national flag. Hong Kong's return to China is a milestone in the history of Hong Kong. After a hundred years of ups and downs, Hong Kong finally rejoined the motherland.

“Hong Kong people have become the masters of the land they call home. And Hong Kong has since entered into a new phase of development.”

The Chinese ambassador said that reunification had finally ended the historical obstacle to closer ties between China and Britain, sending the bilateral relations onto a fast track.

“In the 20 years that followed, the China–UK relationship grew from comprehensive partnership to comprehensive strategic partnership, and then to a global comprehensive strategic partnership for the 21st century. Now this relationship has entered a ‘Golden Era’,” Liu Xiaoming said.

“In late 1970s, Mr Deng Xiaoping, the courageous and insightful leader, first proposed the vision of ‘one country, two systems’. This innovative framework was first applied to the Hong Kong question.

“Twenty years on, ‘one country, two systems’ has been hugely successful in Hong Kong and Macau.

“This policy has shown strong vitality. It has been an enrichment to socialism with Chinese features in both theory and practice. It opens up a creative new way for the peaceful reunification of China. It heralds a new journey towards rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. It strengthens our confidence in achieving the ultimate unification of the Chinese nation.

“Today, Hong Kong is the fourth biggest financial centre, the fifth largest container port and the eighth biggest trading entity in the world.

“Hong Kong is also making steady progress in its democratic governance. From political stability, governance efficiency and regulatory quality to the rule of law, control over corruption, right to expression and accountability, many indicators are showing Hong Kong's improvement over pre-handover years…

“…Hong Kong's return is a major innovation in terms of social and political system.

"’One country, two systems’ is a great invention. It allows the coexistence of the socialist and capitalist systems within one country.”

This is unprecedented in human history. In Deng Xiaoping's words: "Has any government in the history of the world ever adopted a liberal policy like this? Has any western country in the history of capitalism ever done anything like this?"

The successful practice of ‘one country, two systems’ in Hong Kong shows that this solution proposed by China is absolutely feasible. It is a daring and successful experiment with different social systems.”

• Full text of Ambassador Liu Xiaoming's address