Hong Kong People fear for their Freedoms

The five people, including Lee Bo (bottom right) have disappeared so far

This afternoon around 6,000 people gathered at Hong Kong government headquarters at Tamar in Admiralty to march to the central liaison office in Western to protest against the disappearances of publisher Lee Bo and his four associates.

Many in Hong Kong now fear that anything they say or do that may anger Beijing will result in them being forcibly taken away to the mainland.

A video featuring these four talk about their fears for HK

Chanvinci is one of the producers of the local film Ten Years, that gives a bleak prediction of what the city will be like. He made a new video, interviewing a range of notable people in Hong Kong about the Lee Bo incident, including former Chief Secretary Anson Chan Fong An-sang, Scholarism founder Joshua Wong Chi-fung, barrister Margaret Ng Ngoi-yee, law professor Benny Tai Yiu-ting, actor Gregory Wong Chung-yiu, and singer Anthony Wong Yiu-ming.

They all voice their concerns about Hong Kong's future that has supposedly run on the premise of "one country, two systems" since 1997.

The disappearances of the five people show China's disregard for the Basic Law, and Gregory Wong painted a frightening scenario reminiscent of the Cultural Revolution, where one never knows if they are safe talking to their friends or relatives, while Anthony Wong wonders if he might be next to disappear.

Chan, Lee and Ng plead for the international community to take notice and speak out on Hong Kong's behalf, otherwise the city's reputation as an international one will be tarnished forever.

The rally today protests against Lee Bo's disappearance

Many Hong Kong people wonder what kind of consular protection they will get depending on what government-issued documents they carry. It seems a Hong Kong passport or BNO don't give much protection, and one wonders if this will renew people's interest in immigrating to Canada, the United States or Australia.

Meanwhile, the Chinese side seems to be crumbling with regards to its handling of the situation.

The latest is that a pro-Beijing newspaper claims Lee Bo's wife received a video and letter in which he repeated going to the mainland was "a personal conduct". He also said he "didn't understand why it was made into such a big deal".

Lee apparently says everyone should respect his decision to go to the mainland and that it is none of anyone's business.

The paper, Headline News, didn't show any evidence of this purported video, in which Lee also allegedly says that taking part in today's protest would not be a good idea.

How contrived is this message?

Perhaps even more bizarre is how the Global Times, a nationalistic paper on the mainland has written its editorial. It claimed it was not problematic for mainland authorities to probe Causeway Bay Books because it "publishes and sells political books targeting mainland readers", and creates "special interference to the maintenance of order in the mainland".

A publisher finds a market in selling books that digs up dirt about senior Chinese officials. In this case it is possibly linked to the latest book that talks about Chinese President Xi Jinping's previous amorous relationships. If the mainland finds these books  a problem, then it should search every suitcase arriving from Hong Kong and punish those people for bringing them in.

Lee Bo is only doing what every other publisher is trying to do -- make money. And he can do it with the backing of freedom of the press in Hong Kong.

However, the Global Times article continues to say it would be "in accordance with Chinese laws" for the mainland to initiate an investigation. The editorial said it was constitutional for mainland authorities to find ways to "get around" local laws, and make one comply with their investigations "without breaching systemic bottom lines".

How is this possible, when, according to Basic Law, only Hong Kong police can investigate matters within the city. For the paper to say it was permissible for mainland authorities to go around local law is shocking and illegal.

We can continue going through the semantics, but it's very clear Beijing seems to think it can have an even tighter grip on Hong Kong and do whatever it wants with it and its people.

The longer the five do not show up, the more we wonder where they are, and fears for our own safety continue to magnify.

Seems like we're already getting a taste of what life in Hong Kong will be like after June 30, 2046...

Picture of the Day: Charging the Ride

Charging your phone is another way to multitask on the Airport Express

This evening after dinner I met up with a friend from New York who is on an overnight layover before going back to the United States.

We used to work together briefly in Beijing and she reminded me it was eight years ago!

I always remember my Beijing years as a few years ago, but it's encroaching on the 10-year mark soon!

After our two-hour catch-up where she stayed at the Hong Kong SkyCity Marriott near AsiaWorld Expo, I caught the Airport Express home.

And when I sat down I noticed there was a USB charger located on the seat rest. How novel and how thoughtful!

This was the first time I saw this in the Airport Express -- I took the train earlier and it didn't have this feature, and a few days earlier when I arrived back in Hong Kong the train I was on didn't have it either.

Nevertheless, it's good to know the Airport Express train is keeping relevant, and that phone charger is a godsend for many passengers who need a quick charge on the way. And why not charge the phone during the 24-minute ride?

Meddling in Markets Worse for Stocks

An investor watches the stock market drop which is important in free markets

This week has seen a rocky ride on the stock exchange with China worrying investors with its circuit breaker mechanism.

It was implemented on Tuesday, shutting down all trades after shares dropped more than 7 percent, and then yesterday -- where trading was only 13 minutes long before the circuit breaker cooled off trades.

The Chinese thought they could control the markets, but the past few days have shown China's drop in the value of stocks may possibly be due to production numbers being even lower than expected, or the state of China's economy is worse off than previously believed.

The aim of having the circuit breaker may have been to protect mainland stock investors, but it shows how volatile the stock market is in China and it is these fears that crossed the Atlantic and then the Pacific, adversely affecting investors in Europe and North America respectively

Last night it was decided by the China Securities Regulatory Commission to do away with the circuit breaker mechanism that was only implemented on Monday.

"The negative impact now has exceeded the positive side [of the mechanism]," said Deng Ge, a spokesman for the CSRC.

The left chart shows China, the one on the right, Hong Kong

Today the Chinese market ended slightly higher at 2 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index was down 6.52 percent. It was the worst weekly decline since September 23, 2011.

That's a bit of consolation after such a crazy ride this week.

Part of the problem is that the vast majority of mainland stock investors have very little knowledge about stocks, many only hearing how they can earn money from trading them.

Instead many have a herd mentality, just following others' advice without much critical thinking and research, and a number of them are left holding the bag, while the savvier ones cash out with princely sums.

It's also interesting to note a business columnist's theory about how stock markets work relative to the economy's performance.

Jake van der Kamp's latest article shows two graphs. The first one is of the Chinese economy and stock market. As one line shows a steady diagonal climb to the right, indicating the mainland's increasing GDP annually, the country's stock market is performing miserably.

However the second graph shows Hong Kong's situation. The city's GDP moves in tandem with economic growth -- which van der Kamp says indicates a healthy economy -- when business is good, stocks are too.

It just shows how the mainland stock market is severely undermined by the authorities' interference, and adding the circuit breaker this week made things even worse.

One wonders whose head(s) will roll since the circuit breaker -- which was meant to help control the stock market -- did the complete opposite!

So while the Communist Party of China and President Xi Jinping may desperately want to control the stock market, trying to meddle not only makes it worse for their fledgling investors, but also gives the authorities less credibility.

China should really step back and let the market determine which publicly-listed companies will sink and who will swim. Only then can the Chinese economy become leaner and stronger.

But with its paranoia for control, a laissez-faire attitude won't be introduced any time soon. So hold on for more rocky rides on the stock market in the coming days and weeks.

Mystery of Bookseller's Disappearance Deepens

Lee and four other associates are still missing and no credible news available

The mystery of bookseller Lee Bo's disappearance along with four others associated with either Causeway Bay Books or Mighty Current publishing company continues, and the outlandish information so far just continues to not only illustrate how inaccurate people can be, but also no one has any correct answers.

The latest rumour was from pro-Beijing lawmaker Ng Leung-sing, who represents the finance sector.

He had the gall to tell the media that Lee went to the mainland to visit prostitutes -- without checking if this rumour was correct or not -- or with any evidence to prove this point. Ng later apologized to Lee's wife Sophie Choi Ka-ping, but she refused it. She could sue him for libel. Or Lee himself could -- if he resurfaces.

But think about it -- as Civic Party's Claudia Mo Man-ching says: why would someone smuggle themselves to the mainland to have some fun? And why would he go anyway when he thought he would be safer in Hong Kong?

Lee's wife (right) believes the letter is written by her husband

The longer Lee and his associates do not show themselves, the greater Hong Kong people's fears are about the erosion of "one country, two systems" and their personal freedoms.

Another strange twist was that Choi had filed a missing person's report on her husband with the police, but withdrew it the other day when she received a handwritten letter believed to be in Lee's handwriting.

In the letter that was published by Central New Agency, Lee claimed he went to the mainland "in his own way" and was assisting in an investigation that "may take a while".

Why would he go to the mainland "in his own way" when he left his return home permit at home?

Hong Kong Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying finally expressed concern about the case, stating investigators would continue looking into the case even though Choi had withdrawn her missing person's request.

He said it was unacceptable and unconstitutional for mainland agencies to enforce the law in Hong Kong.

Philip Hammond asks WangYi about Lee's case in Beijing

Meanwhile British foreign secretary Philip Hammond brought up Lee Bo's case while visiting Beijing, saying it was not acceptable for "someone to be spirited out of Hong Kong" to face charges elsewhere.

But Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Lee "is first and foremost a Chinese citizen", and warned against "groundless speculation".

If Wang wants to end rumours, why not tell us where Lee is then? The bookseller may be ethnically Chinese, but he is first and foremost a Hong Kong citizen. Perhaps in 2046 he will be a Chinese citizen.

The five may be in trouble regarding an upcoming book that allegedly details the Chinese President's previous relationships.

And it was because Hong Kong has such fundamental rights as freedom of speech and media that people can express their own opinions about whatever they want, including being critical of the Chinese government.

However, this case is proving more and more this [being critical of Beijing] is not acceptable, and is already seemingly treating the city like any other mainland metropolis.

As a result, if the allegations are true that Lee and his associates were kidnapped across the border against their will, Hong Kong people are going to be even more terrified of the Communist government they were trying to flee before 1997.

This is the worst kind of public relations Beijing should want in the city, and the Chinese trying to flex its muscles because it was not impressed with what happened last year with the Occupy protests is not going to make things better.

Also worth noting is Leung's response -- a bit late, but interesting for him to stop short of condemning what may have possibly happened to Lee and his associates. Leung is the CE of Hong Kong. Surely he has enough clout to call Beijing and ask what's really going on.

This is why we need someone to represent the interests of Hong Kong and stand up to Beijing.

But in reality this is not what is happening and we can only hope Lee and his associates will eventually show up. We really need to know what happened to them, the sooner the better.