Identifier | Created | Classification | Origin |
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07BEIJING4460 | 2007-07-03 17:15:00 | CONFIDENTIAL | Embassy Beijing |
VZCZCXRO2684 OO RUEHCN RUEHGH RUEHVC DE RUEHBJ #4460/01 1841715 ZNY CCCCC ZZH O 031715Z JUL 07 FM AMEMBASSY BEIJING TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 9566 INFO RUEHOO/CHINA POSTS COLLECTIVE RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC |
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BEIJING 004460 |
1. (C) China celebrated the 10th anniversary of Hong Kong's reversion on July 1 amid an all-out media blitz, with official press providing round-the-clock coverage of President Hu Jintao's travel to Hong Kong for the official commemoration ceremonies. PRC media lauded the success of the one country two systems formula and touted Hong Kong's progress since reversion, while steering clear of political issues such as universal suffrage and pro-democracy demonstrations. Despite the media-generated hoopla, many Beijing residents appear neither to care nor know much about Hong Kong. Problems like universal suffrage in Hong Kong pale in comparison to the challenges faced by PRC residents elsewhere, one contact argued, noting that he had little sympathy for Hong Kong on that score. For other Mainland intellectuals, Hong Kong remains a symbol, albeit an imperfect one, of the autonomy and freedoms they hope someday might spread to other parts of China. All contacts agreed that the one country two systems formula has so far succeeded, despite dire predictions of Hong Kong's demise at the time of reversion. End Summary. Celebrating Hong Kong's Reversion: PRC Media Blitz -------------------------- -------------------------- 2. (C) China this past week greeted the 10th anniversary of Hong Kong's reversion to the PRC with an all-out media blitz trumpeting the success of the one country two systems formula. Several weeks' worth of media attention culminated in the round-the-clock coverage of President Hu Jintao's travel to Hong Kong June 29 - July 1 for the official commemoration ceremonies. Hu's visit and the reversion anniversary were given top play in all of China's official print media, with, for example, the Party mouthpiece People's Daily leading with that story for three days straight beginning on June 29, issuing a separate special edition on Hong Kong on July 1. Most Mainland magazines over the past several weeks have had Hong Kong cover stories. Television coverage of Hu's visit, much of it live, was equally as thorough. The Hong Kong reversion ceremonies are a "huge event" for China, and the saturation reporting of the anniversary is "unprecedented," Professor Sun Keqin (protect), Director of the Center for Hong Kong and Macau Affairs at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations (CICIR), told Poloff on July 2. 3. (C) The extensive media coverage was part of a campaign to tout Hong Kong's development under 10 years of PRC rule and play up feelings of national pride, while avoiding politically sensitive subjects. According to Zhou Qingan (strictly protect), free lance journalist and Professor at Qinghua University, China's propaganda department issued media guidelines that said reporting on the event should not contain anything about direct elections or political protests, but instead should focus on Hong Kong's great progress under the one country two systems formula and the fact that doomsayers from a decade ago have been proven wrong. A representative example of the results of that guidance was a June 29 Global Times piece that highlighted the 1995 Fortune magazine cover story entitled, "The Death of Hong Kong," as proof of how wrong such dire predictions were about Hong Kong's future. In contrast, the article pointed out, Time magazine's assessment of Hong Kong's future this year was "sunshine, with clouds." President Hu Jintao himself stressed the theme of the success of the one country two systems formula during his speech at the July 1 commemoration and inauguration ceremony for the Hong Kong Chief Executive and his cabinet (Refs A and B). Public Indifference -------------------------- 4. (C) Despite the media-generated hoopla, most Beijing residents appear neither to care nor know much about Hong Kong. Wang Wen (protect), reporter at the Global Times, conceded that the Chinese public has been very "passive" and "apathetic" regarding the reversion story, though people could not help but be aware of the event, given the non-stop media bombardment. Hong Kong was a big story 10 years ago, but today, PRC residents have much more important things to worry about, according to Chang Shaoyang (protect), Deputy Editor at the Legal Daily. Problems like universal suffrage BEIJING 00004460 002 OF 002 in Hong Kong pale in comparison to the challenges faced by Chinese residents elsewhere, he argued, noting that he had little sympathy for Hong Kong on that score. Summing up public attitudes on the reversion story, Fang Jinyu, bureau chief for the Guangdong Party Committee paper Southern Daily, told Poloff that ordinary people are not paying much attention to the reversion commemoration and are ignorant of the issues at play in Hong Kong, in part because of the restrictions on the Mainland's media coverage of Hong Kong over the past decade. Hong Kong as Symbol -------------------------- 5. (C) At a minimum, the experience of the past decade demonstrates the success of the one country two systems formula, all of our contacts said. For some, this success is a source of pride, symbolizing China's recovery from its "century of humiliation." CICIR's Professor Sun argued that many Chinese were moved a decade ago to see China "reunified," correcting the wrong of Hong Kong's having been "stolen" during the 19th century. Some Chinese are now equally as proud to see that Hong Kong has been ruled well by the PRC since 1997. Wen of Global Times thought Chinese leaders want to use Hong Kong's success to symbolize the PRC's trustworthiness as a responsible nation that has kept its promises under one country two systems. On the other hand, Professor Sun stated, most Chinese probably view Hong Kong simply as a symbol of wealth and development, a tourist mecca where people go to play and shop. Regardless, all Chinese want to see Hong Kong succeed. 6. (C) Hong Kong also serves as a symbol, albeit an imperfect one, of local autonomy and personal freedoms, Wen argued. For some PRC leaders, this is a serious concern. China is unlikely to allow Hong Kong to have universal suffrage soon, or permit PRC papers to report n the issue, because China fears a "domino effect" that could spread the demand for voting rights across the rest of China, Wen asserted. As Fang Jinyu put it, the fear is that people will ask, "If Hong Kong can elect its chief executive, why can't Beijing elect its mayor?" Some Chinese intellectuals nevertheless continue to believe that Hong Kong's unique status may yet influence the expansion of local autonomy to other parts of China, according to Professor Yang Yusheng (protect) of the Chinese University of Politics and Law. As long as Hong Kong can preserve, and hopefully expand, its autonomy and the freedoms it enjoys as a result, Yang said, it will continue to provide hope to those who are advocating reforms designed to increase the rights of those at the grass roots level across China. RANDT |