Beijing Dangles an Olive Branch

How did Robert Chow score meetings with officials like Wang Guangya?

It's all relative isn't it.

Now that the Hong Kong pan-democrats seem completely tame next to the localists, the Chinese government has decided to grant the pan-dems mainland travel documents from now on.

But the pan-democrats aren't buying it. Leung Yiu-chung of the Neighbourhood and Worker's Service Centre says it is a two-pronged strategy by Beijing to break the ice with opposition lawmakers, while cracking down hard on independence advocacy.

Leung Yiu-chung isn't convinced by Beijing's olive branch

"If officials would like to talk about relaunching the city's political reform process, I would go anytime, even this afternoon, but there is no need for another sightseeing trip," To said.

What was also bizarre about the announcement was that it came not from Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying, but from the pan-democrats' fiercest critic, Robert Chow Yung, who runs the pro-establishment group Silent Majority for Hong Kong.

He has managed to score meetings with Wang Guangya, director of the State Council's Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, Zhang Dejiang, chairman of the National People's Congress, and Chen Zuoer, chairman of the semi-official Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau Studies.

The fact that Chow got these meetings -- one purportedly lasting as long as two hours -- shows that even Leung Chun-ying doesn't quite have the guanxi touch anymore.

Nevertheless, at least three pan-democrats who have been unable to renew their mainland travel documents for more than a decade -- Democrat James To Kun-sun, "Long Hair" Leung Kwok-hung from the League of Social Democrats, and Leung Yiu-chung -- have said they will not apply for permits.

Leung Kwok-hung isn't applying for a permit anytime soon

"I also found it very strange that Chow was informed before the local government. It seems Beijing has downgraded the local government," Leung Yiu-chung said.

When asked if he knew about the announcement from Beijing, Leung Chun-ying declined to confirm, only saying he had been "working hard to advocate that the central government promptly allow our pan-democrat friends [to visit the mainland]".

Hmmm... since when were the pan-democrats his "friends"?

Even Rita Fan Hsu Lai-tai, Hong Kong's sole representative on the National People's Congress Standing Committee didn't know about the latest development. She saw it as a gesture to the pan-democrats that "if you are not [advocating independence] there is no reason why there should be no communication [between us]".

Very interesting development, but also good on the pan-democrats for sticking to their guns. Democracy is worth much more than a travel permit to the mainland...

Fruitless Political Rhetoric

From left: Wang Guangya, Li Fei and Zhang Xiaoming in Shenzhen

Today was the last chance for the central government to persuade pan-democrats to accept the political reform proposal in a meeting in Shenzhen, but to no avail.

We all knew it was an exercise of going through the motions, with each senior Chinese leader giving veiled threats in their speeches.

Earlier Zhang Xiaoming, director of the central government's Hong Kong liaison office said pan-democrats would be punished in the next year's Legislative Council election.

Then Basic Law Committee chairman Li Fei insisted the government's proposal was "democratic, fair, open and just", and that the plan had received broad support, as it had taken into account the people's "reasonable views".

One wonders what "reasonable views" means...

Wang Guangya, director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, stressed Beijing  would "unswervingly and sincerely support" Hong Kong in electing the chief executive by popular ballot in 2017.

The pan-democrats address the media after the meeting

"Regardless of the resistance it faces, the central government would make its best effort," Wang said.

"The central government is willing to engage different sectors in Hong Kong, including the pan-democrats, and to force a consensus within the maximum limit based on the Basic Law and the relevant decisions of the National People's Congress Standing Committee."

Is the central government really engaging a variety of sectors in the city? And what does "force a consensus" mean?

All this rhetoric for a four-hour meeting that went no where. We don't blame the pan-democrats, they are only standing their ground, and reflecting the wishes of a good number of Hong Kong people.

The central government has no idea what democracy looks like and in keeping with its interests, wants to ensure only politically correct candidates run for chief executive.

But what has 17, almost 18 years of chief executives under Beijing's leadership given Hong Kong?

There is an even greater income gap between the rich and the poor, there is no long-term planning of the city in terms of pollution, transportation, construction, real estate, the economy, education, social issues... the list goes on and on.

That's because no one is looking out for OUR interests, Hong Kong people's interests.

We want a leader who speaks up for Hong Kong and fights for us.

And yet Beijing does not want to allow that to happen under "one country, two systems".

The city is fast becoming mainlandized much to local residents' horror. Things have changed so much in less than 20 years, one shudders to think what's going to happen in the next five.

Meanwhile the 79-day Occupy or Umbrella Movement brought us together temporarily, but now what? We are back to being disparate souls, focused on our jobs and wondering if we'll be able to afford a home -- ever.

But oh sorry -- those aren't the most pressing issues at the moment -- what's really important now is to decide if we're patriotic enough to accept the political reform package.

The mainlaindization of Hong Kong continues...

Conservative Cadres Rule HK

Now senior cadres are complaining about the NPC decision on HK in 2007

The squabbling continues over universal suffrage in Hong Kong, as some senior cadres don't think the city should be able to have the vote unless there were tight restrictions, and that to allow "one man, one vote" in 2017 was an unwise decision made in 2007.

And many cadres wouldn't mind if Hong Kong lawmakers vetoed the electoral reforms, perhaps hinting it would be an opportunity to scrap the whole idea altogether.

Apparently it was these elderly folks who had to be appeased and hence the very conservative "reforms" of candidates needing to have 50 percent of the vote of the nominating committee.

"Some senior mainland officials do not want to see universal suffrage introduced in Hong Kong at all," a source familiar with Beijing's policies on Hong Kong said. "They believe that the central government leadership's decision in 2007... was unwise and not well thought out.

"Those Hong Kong people who oppose the framework may not realize that many Beijing officials will be happy to see Hong Kong's electoral methods stay as they are."

However, there are other senior cadres, like Wang Guangya, director of the State Council's Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office who would like to see universal suffrage implemented in the city before he retires next year.

So it's interesting to see there are disputes within the Chinese leadership on this issue, while the pan-democrats are fraying at the seams now, with Civic Party leader Ronny Tong Ka-wah annoyed that they did not fight in a "rational and pragmatic manner".

"The Communist Party is not the most transparent party in the world, but it is very predictable," Tong said. "But while many people said they know the Communist Party [is inclined to bend] under a soft approach rather than a hard one -- they also said they would adopt a hard approach. This doesn't mean you have to give up on principles and values... and I am not saying that we have to kneel [to Beijing], but if there is another method to do this, then why not do it?"

So while Beijing may have the upper hand, it seems there is not complete consensus on its side, while the pan-democrats plan to veto the electoral reform proposal.

So now what?

These senior cadres either have no clue what a democracy looks like or are too scared to unleash it in Hong Kong, fearing it will spread elsewhere...