Countries must unite to face down China’s growing autocracy, says Nathan Law, pro-
democracy activist from Hong Kong
Hong Kongers will not let their spirits be crushedTHE PANDEMIC of 2020 ensured that a lot of other important news was buried. That
made it the perfect time for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to act. On June 30th it
implemented a new national security law (NSL) in Hong Kong, which in effect ended the
“one country, two systems” political settlement that protected British colonial-era
freedoms when the territory reverted to Chinese rule in 1997.
The new law has changed the fabric and mood of one of the world’s great cities, and
poses a deadly threat to this centre of international finance. It also showed that the CCP
will stop at nothing to enforce its coercive control over every corner of its territory. Its
actions in Xinjiang and Tibet have reinforced the point. In 2021 we can expect this
heavy-handed approach to continue.
China views civil liberties and human rights as an existential threat. It knows they can
lead to political challenges, as shown by its opposition to months of protests in support
of such freedoms on the streets of Hong Kong. The CCP is also driven by the economic
problems China is facing at home, and the fear of instability they could bring. China’s
economic performance has long been regarded as a source of legitimacy and stability.
But the pandemic has dealt this a blow, with a looming debt crisis, uneven recovery,
growing income gaps and rising unemployment rate. China’s growth model and wealth-
distribution system may fail to generate sufficient economic power to keep the country
going on the current path. Internal dissent is increasing.
Amid this insecurity, the government in Beijing resorts to nationalist narratives and
further repression to force adherence to the party line and to divert public attention.
The “wolf-warrior” diplomacy adopted under President Xi Jinping’s leadership is an
example of this shift, trying to drum up nationalistic pride to replace decreasing
confidence in the party. Vocal critics have been quashed on the mainland, as they have
now been in Hong Kong. Ren Zhiqiang, a successful businessman, was recently
sentenced to 18 years in prison after criticising Mr Xi. The repression on the periphery,
especially the internment of hundreds of thousands of ethnic Uyghurs in camps in the
north-western region of Xinjiang, is the most notorious of all.
Yet repression only creates more resistance, which makes regional instability persist.
Coercion will continue, but it comes at a cost to ordinary Chinese citizens. Like Hong
Kongers, many mainland Chinese are keeping up their resistance, even if they are not
able to do so openly on the streets.
Meanwhile, in Hong Kong, the clampdown has clearly had an effect, as people have
cleared the streets for fear of the NSL. My former colleague, Joshua Wong, was arrested
in September for participating in “unauthorised assembly”. The CCP is influencing Hong
Kong’s once independent legal system and allowing unchecked police violence, paving
the way for a broader crackdown. There is no sign the aggression will abate.