HONG KONG CATHOLICS FORESEE NO CHANGE IN PRC

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 HONG KONG 001919 SIPDIS DEPT FOR EAP/CM; ALSO FOR DRL/IRF E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/14/2019 TAGS: PGOV PHUM KIRF HK CH SUBJECT: HONG KONG CATHOLICS FORESEE NO CHANGE IN PRC POLICY ON RELIGION HONG KONG 00001919 001.2 OF 002 Classified By: Acting Consul General Christopher Marut for reasons 1.4( b) and (d) ¶1. (C) Summary: Catholic China-watchers in Hong Kong do not anticipate that the mid-September change of leadership at the State Administration of Religious Affairs (SARA) will result in any significant revision of the PRC's policy on religion. Despite SARA's central government-level status, one observer believes it lacks any real power to enforce its policies among local Religious Affairs Bureaus, who may thus act against the interest of the religious communities they oversee. Any influence SARA does enjoy among the leadership is the result of former director Ye Xiaowen's adroit exploitation of religious "crises." None of our contacts see any prospect for movement on diplomatic normalization with the Vatican in the foreseeable future. Fifteen potential bishops with Vatican approval still await appointment by Beijing. Our contacts attribute this "moratorium" to the Olympics and the PRC's 60th anniversary, and they are currently waiting to see whether the PRC will finally move forward with the appointments or identify another "sensitive period" as grounds for further delay. End Summary. ¶2. (C) During the week of October 5, we met with Monsignors Eugene Nugent and Ante Jozic (who will replace Nugent as de facto Papal Nuncio to Hong Kong by year's end); Dr. Anthony Lam Sui-ki and Fr. Peter Barry at the Holy Spirit Study Center; and Sister Beatrice Leung, who serves the Macau Diocese but is also an honorary professor in the Department of Politics and Public Administration at the University of Hong Kong. -------------- Change in Name Only -------------- ¶3. (C) None of our interlocutors believe that the leadership transition at the State Administration of Religious Affairs (SARA) presages any substantive change in Mainland religion policy, nor do they see new director Wang Zuo'an as personally inclined toward reform or greater openness than his former boss Ye Xiaowen. Wang was the most senior of SARA's three deputy directors, responsible for policy toward Christian denominations, and our contacts seem to regard his elevation merely as an internal promotion. Several have met him at conferences or functions and judge him to be more worldly and less abrasive than Ye. They also contrast his liberal arts education favorably with Ye's old-school background in engineering. ¶4. (C) Anthony Lam at the Holy Spirit Study Center found it peculiar that the central government reassigned Ye only two weeks before the sixtieth anniversary of the founding of the People,s Republic of China, a "sensitive period" made more sensitive by religious-based unrest in Xinjiang and Tibet. Lam argued that SARA has a key role in Tibet and Xinjiang policy as the organ charged with propagating the correctness of the government's religious policies among the people. Sister Beatrice contended that Ye had been removed from the leadership position at SARA precisely because he was unable to "handle" the religious minority issues in those regions. (Comment: No other religious expert interviewed shared Sister Beatrice,s opinion, nor have Hong Kong media portrayed Ye,s "promotion" to the Central Institute of Socialism as a sacking. End Comment.) -------------- Toothless, but not Witless -------------- ¶5. (C) Despite ascribing to it a key role in Tibet and Xinjiang, Lam saw SARA as nearly powerless to enforce Beijing's policies among regional Religious Affairs Bureaus (RABs),owing mainly to SARA's lack of budget funds to distribute. In this environment, locally-funded provincial RABs are free to operate according to their own dictates. Lam cited the example of the Catholic Archdiocese of Taiyuan in Shanxi Province, which receives only a tiny portion of the rental income generated from Church property located in the city of Tianjin. The local RAB and municipal administration take nearly 99 percent of the rent payments as "administrative costs" before transferring the money to the archdiocese. ¶6. (C) Without much of an institutional powerbase from SARA itself, Lam told us, Ye was nonetheless able to increase his personal power at times by creating a sense of crisis among the leadership regarding religious issues. Lam cited Falun Gong and the canonization of Catholics who were "martyred" HONG KONG 00001919 002.2 OF 002 after the Revolution as leadership concerns exploited by Ye. As an example, he told us the central government was concerned that Bishop Joseph Fan Xueyan, a church leader from the Diocese of Baoding, Hebei Province, who died under torture in 1992, may be canonized, which would undermine China's image as a society tolerant of religion. -------------- Bishops Trapped in Limbo -------------- ¶7. (C) As much as they expect no liberalization of policies on religion within China, our contacts also expect no new initiatives towards the Vatican coming out of Beijing. Monsignor Nugent indicated that the Vatican had stated its position and was now waiting for the PRC to respond. (Note: We understand the Vatican's current offer includes breaking relations with Taiwan in favor of the PRC and agreeing to Beijing-approved candidates for bishop, provided that the Vatican is permitted to make the formal, public appointments of bishops. End Note.) ¶8. (C) Meanwhile, fifteen bishops-elect approved by the Vatican (and at least not rejected by Beijing) await appointment. Monsignor Nugent reported that no new bishop had been ordained in Mainland China since late 2007, a halt he attributes to the successive "sensitive periods" of the Olympics in 2008 and the PRC's 60th anniversary in 2009. Nugent and our other contacts are now waiting to see whether the conclusion of the anniversary celebrations will end the effective moratorium on appointments, or whether Beijing will identify a new "sensitive period." Nugent also expressed concern that Yunnan diocese Bishop Joseph Ma Yinglin, who was appointed without the Vatican's approval in April 2006, might be appointed to head the Catholic Bishop's Conference, which Nugent would regard as a blow struck against Rome. MARUT