His plans to visit Hong Kong to attend an award presentation dinner scuppered, former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) recorded a message for the event’s organizers, the Society of Publishers in Asia. In it, he could not stop himself from having a dig at the government in Taiwan, saying: “I had no idea Hong Kong was such a dangerous place. Ladies and gentlemen, please be careful out there.”
Very funny, but the five people involved with Causeway Bay Books who were whisked away to China against their will are not laughing.
Just two days after Ma’s little joke, bookstore manager Lam Wing-kei (林榮基), one of the five Hong Kong booksellers who were detained in China, called a news conference, revealing the murky details of his “disappearance” and “confession,” saying he would not return to mainland China “to assist with inquiries,” and damn the consequences.
He told Hong Kongers that the case is no longer just about him and his colleagues — it concerns their freedoms, too.
“If even I do not have a voice, then Hong Kong is lost,” he said.
Here is a manager of a bookshop who has the courage to say no to state violence and is brave enough to refuse to divulge the names of the store’s clients.
Lam’s call did not fall on deaf ears, and 6,000 Hong Kongers took to the streets in a show of solidarity.
Hong Kong student activist Joshua Wong (黃之鋒) said that he disagrees with Ma’s comment — that Taiwan and Hong Kong are both free and democratic societies — but agreed there are parallels to be drawn.
The treatment of Hong Kongers is comparable to the oppression suffered by Taiwanese during the dangwai (黨外, “outside the party”) and White Terror periods, he said.
Wong cited examples: Kevin Lau (劉進圖), former editor of the liberal Ming Pao daily, slashed six times in a vicious attack on a street in Hong Kong; an “Umbrella movement” protester being taken into a dark corner by seven police officers and beaten for close to four minutes; and the Causeway Bay Books case.
Wong said that Hong Kongers live in constant fear, and Ma should not joke about whether Hong Kong is a dangerous place.
China’s influence is everywhere. Not even the world of entertainment is exempt. The international luxury brand Lancome was to sponsor a concert by Hong Kong pop singer Denise Ho (何韻詩), but pulled out at the last minute, reportedly due to pressure from Chinese authorities. Many Hong Kongers boycotted Lancome’s products, and Ho, not wanting to disappoint her fans, went ahead with the concert anyway, at the same time and place.
Angela Gui, daughter of Causeway Bay Books shareholder and Swedish national Gui Minhai (桂民海), who also went missing, testified at a hearing in the US Congress, saying that speaking up was her only option. Grace Geng (耿格), the daughter of Chinese human rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng (高智晟), currently under surveillance, came to Taiwan seeking assistance, hoping that President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) would help not just her family, but all Chinese.
On the surface, life goes on as normal in Hong Kong. People enjoy the nightlife, business is brisk, the horses are racing. However, there is a palpable feeling of trepidation in the territory. Late Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping (鄧小平) promised the nightlife and the horse-racing would continue for 50 years after the handover, but since 1997 the agreed “one country, two systems” framework has gradually moved more in the direction of a single system and Hong Kong’s freedoms are gradually being suppressed and eroded by Beijing. It is like the proverbial frog in boiling water, unaware it is being slowly cooked until it is too late.
Ma was right, for once. Hong Kong is a dangerous place to be. You cannot see it, you cannot hear it, but the danger is there. Just because you do not know it does not mean it is not true.
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