The post ‘They’re Going To Eat Our Lunch,’ Biden Warns After Call With China’s Xi first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

Attempts to dissuade China’s ruling Communist Party from asserting more authority over Hong Kong didn’t work. Now that China is imposing a new national security law on the territory, world powers are looking to punish Beijing.

The law hands the central government almost unchecked legal power in the former British colony, which was promised a “high degree of autonomy” for 50 years when it was returned to China in 1997. Drafted secretly and enacted swiftly on Tuesday, it is considered by many analysts to be even harsher than expected.

Policymakers, activists, and analysts outside China say it’s critical now for governments from Washington to Tokyo to back their words with action by cranking up pressure on China’s leadership while trying to help the people of Hong Kong.

In the short run, few expect China’s emboldened leadership to blink. Over the long run, though, the hope is that pressure will lead to change.

“Obviously, more now has to be done that they have pulled the trigger,” Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., said at a hearing on Hong Kong’s future in the House Foreign Affairs Committee on Wednesday.

“We need to meet this as never before. We didn’t do it after Tiananmen Square,” he said, referring to the June 4, 1989, crackdown on pro-democracy protesters. “We acquiesced and they took note of that and said, ‘You know, give it a little time and people will just let it go.’ ”

Economic pressure and sanctions

In late May, the Trump administration decertified Hong Kong for not being sufficiently autonomous from China. The U.S. has begun steps to remove elements of the special treatment that the territory has enjoyed for decades because it was different from other Chinese cities.

On Monday, the State Department announced an end to the sale of military equipment and other technologies to Hong Kong. The Commerce Department suspended preferential treatment and export license exceptions for Hong Kong the same day.

The steps may complicate China’s plans to turn the sprawling Pearl River Delta in southern China into a coordinated economic powerhouse with Hong Kong as the technology hub, says Ho-Fung Hung, a professor of political economy at Johns Hopkins University who follows Hong Kong affairs.

Hung says China had been expecting access to certain technologies via Hong Kong that are unavailable on the mainland, but that has changed.

Source: https://www.npr.org/2020/07/02/886587827/as-china-imposes-new-hong-kong-law-u-s-and-allies-take-steps-to-retaliate

The post As China Imposes New Hong Kong Law, U.S. And Allies Take Steps To Retaliate first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

Chinese stocks led losses for a mixed day’s trade in Asia on Wednesday, and Hong Kong looks like a police state. There are cops at every intersection, flashing lights wherever you turn, and many of the force’s 31,180 officers are on the street.

The Hang Seng was down 1.1% in late-afternoon trade before a late rally pared that to 0.4% at the bell. Hong Kong’s benchmark has now shed 4.8% since China announced that it would interfere directly in Hong Kong. It will write a treason law in Beijing to insert into the constitution of this supposedly self-governed city.

Hong Kongers are hoping for a response this week as promised by the U.S. administration, while China is bracing for it. The CSI 300 index of the biggest mainland stocks was off 0.7% on Wednesday, at odds with gains of 1.0% in Tokyo.

Hong Kong police fired tear gas and pepper pellets at Wednesday’s protests and arrested at least 300 people. Protesters chanted the familiar refrain “Liberate Hong Kong! Revolution of our times.” The newly proposed sedition law has led to a fresh slogan, “Hong Kong independence, the only way out!”

Today’s protests are sparked by a rubber-stamp reading in Hong Kong’s legislature of a totally different law that criminalizes any disrespect shown to the mainland Chinese national anthem, the March of the Volunteers.

This new law, virtually assured to pass, will punish anyone who alters the lyrics, sings the song in a derogatory way, or insults the song. You can be jailed for three years, and fined HK$50,000 (US$6,400) for not showing the proper courtesy to the dirge, adopted by the Communist forces in 1949 at the end of China’s civil war. The new law forces primary and secondary schools to teach students the song, as well as its “history and spirit.”

You may get a little confused about the drips and drabs of legislation being laid down in Hong Kong. That’s the point. It is a stream of restriction.

We have long prided ourselves on Hong Kong’s “rule of law.” That’s the precedent-based legal system and independent judiciary making Hong Kong so safe and steady compared to the Communist whims of the mainland dictatorship.

China, and its lackey government here, have decided to “rule by law.” They continue to arrest and charge their critics for arcane crimes. There’s selective prosecution. And one piece of new legislation comes after another that whittles away at Hong Kong’s autonomy.

Last year’s demonstrations were precipitated by a proposed law to allow extradition into China’s rigged legal system. That was finally withdrawn. Now Beijing figures it will stop messing around by operating covertly through Hong Kong’s leadership, and will just rule directly.

So China’s parliament is now planning to write a new law especially for Hong Kong, which is supposed to write its own laws. Instead, the Communist Party will be telling Hong Kong what will and won’t be legal in terms of political free speech.

Hong Kong’s constitution says it is required to “enact laws on its own” against “treason, secession, sedition, subversion against the Central People’s Government, or theft of state secrets,” and to prohibit foreign political organizations or bodies from operating in the city. But an attempt to pass this “Article 23” amendment drew such fury in 2003 that 500,000 people marched against it, and that bill was also withdrawn. The constitution also says Hong Kong must introduce democracy, by the way.

The central government has decided simply to lay down Hong Kong law itself. They have rigged the local government system to their benefit, with half of its members appointed by loyalists, but still can’t get their way. Elections due for September may well elect more democracy advocates.

It’s my duty to quote the official viewpoint on this topic, but essentially the comments are either lies or double talk. You can assume exactly the opposite is true.

The new security law “is for the long-term stability of Hong Kong and China, it won’t affect the freedom of assembly and speech, and it won’t affect the city’s status as a financial center,” Hong Kong’s No. 2 official, Chief Secretary Matthew Cheung, said at a press conference.

Unfortunately, the erosion of Hong Kong’s autonomy very much calls into question its status as a financial center. And I’m not sure what kind of freedom of speech anyone has if they’re no longer allowed to say they think Hong Kong should be independent, or that the Communist Party isn’t perfect, or even that the ponderous Chinese national anthem drags on a little.

The government has not consulted the public about the national anthem law, because they know it is unpopular. Instead, they are today “debating” its second reading, a formality toward getting it passed. Pro-democracy legislators held it up by filibustering before pro-Beijing lawmakers physically seized control of a committee in a scuffle and put themselves in charge.

The political pressure on Hong Kong’s freedoms comes as the city calms down over the coronavirus scare. Hong Kong was on high alert as the Wuhan virus first surfaced just before the Lunar New Year. But Hong Kong has got off relatively easy, with “only” 1,066 confirmed cases and 4 deaths, largely thanks to voluntary distancing and mask-wearing adopted by the public well before they were told to do so.

The Chinese leadership has been furious, and very worried, about the pro-democracy protests that began last spring. The dissident voices are a direct challenge to Beijing’s authority that simply wouldn’t be allowed anywhere in mainland China.

If the national security bill passes, they will no longer be possible in Hong Kong, either. China is planning to allow itself to open branches of its secret service in Hong Kong, sending spies into the city, even though Hong Kong’s constitution says it cannot. So the same chilling effect seen in China, where dissidents are locked up for decades at a time, and members of the public are understandably reticent to speak their political mind, will occur in Hong Kong.

Wednesday’s police state activity here is a sign of things to come. Now … sing that song, it’s an order!

Source: https://realmoney.thestreet.com/investing/hong-kong-looks-like-a-police-state-15332807

The post Hong Kong Looks Like a Police State first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

We’ve seen some pretty sad 4th’s of July come and go, and we remember the irony of fireworks celebrations when they weren’t warranted.  But this one is the worst yet.  Particularly in Texas where we thought, after having won elections for the highest of state offices, we’d be represented by people who valued our ideals and would preserve our freedoms despite the best efforts of the mainstream media.  Forget it.  It’s like the governor has gone over to the dark side.  He must be taking the exasperation of the mainstream seriously, believing every outrageous lie they lay on the public.  You wouldn’t want to anger the mob, would you?  Apparently the governor or his staff aren’t willing to take that chance.

Has it occurred to anyone that the same people lecturing us about how racist our country is, how racist we are, and how the mob has a righteous cause, are the same ones hyperventilating because there’s no mask mandate?  Well, our Texas governor has fixed that in what was once presumed to be one of the freest states of all.  Now you will be warned, and after that fined up to $250.00 for each infraction of entering a public space without your “face-covering.”  It’s about “keeping everyone safe,” of course.

Every news break claims a “spike” in cases.  Isn’t that just what they predicted and determined would happen in advance?  It comes as no surprise.  Some of us knew that any attempt to revitalize public life and the freedoms we thought were sacrosanct would be met with another round of panic.  It’s been explained this way.  Everyone was afraid to go to the hospital for about two months.  The “news” told them it was a hotbed of corona-virus, showing hospital footage of people in hazmat gear while reporting a looming shortage of life-saving equipment.  Once restrictions on elective procedures were lifted, people that were ill started visiting their doctors and going to the hospital, much sicker than they were a month or two ago when they should have sought help.  And wouldn’t you know it?  They’ve all tested positive for something that has nothing to do with the reason they went.

There’s your spike.  People are going to the hospital or clinic, and they’re reported as corona-virus cases even though that has nothing to do with their doctor visit.  It’s all a little too convenient for those who want America destroyed.  Don’t expect the “news” people to ever let this virus go.  It’s made these big demonstrations possible.  After all, nobody’s in school, and in most of the major population centers work has been canceled.

For whatever reason, everyone seems to want to appease the mob.  Nobody, save the president and a tiny handful of voices, has dared stand firm against the mob and its demands.  Instead, appeasement is all trusted conservative officials are doing.  The communist insurrection is the virus that is bringing down the formerly greatest nation, and it wouldn’t be happening without the virus. For years they claimed NO FEAR.  They have no fear of breaking God’s Commandments.  But you?  You better fear to go in public, and obey all MANDATES, or the state will get its pound of flesh.

Have you seen what’s going on in Hong Kong?  What used to be perhaps the world’s shopping capital, a bastion of freedom and prosperity on China’s doorstep, is now a police state.  People can’t leave fast enough, because it’s now under communist authority.  It looks as though America is on the same path.

Fourth of July celebrations?  It’s more like time for mourning the loss of the very idea of freedom.  A time for sackcloth and ashes.  Prayer and fasting.  But we’re not issuing any mandates.

Mark

Source: http://www.intercontinentalcog.org/fridayupdates.php

The post Weekly Update by Mark Armstrong – 3 July 2020 first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

HONG KONG (NYTIMES) – China and its allies are using threats and pressure to get business to back Beijing’s increasingly hard-line stance toward Hong Kong, leading companies to muzzle or intimidate workers who speak out in protest.

Leung Chun Ying, Hong Kong’s former top leader, on Friday (May 29) called for a boycott of HSBC, the London bank because it had not publicly backed Beijing’s push to enact a new national security law covering the territory.

“Neither China nor Hong Kong owes HSBC anything,” he wrote in a Facebook post. “HSBC’s businesses in China can be replaced overnight by banks from China and from other countries.”

Days earlier, a union representing financial workers filed complaints with Hong Kong financial regulators alleging that two Chinese banks had pressured their employees to sign a petition supporting the law.

“Such behavior by a supervisor to compel employees to take political sides could be considered abusive,” the union wrote in letters to local officials.

Lawyers, bankers, professors, and other professionals interviewed by The New York Times described a growing culture of fear in offices across the city. Employees face pressure to support pro-Beijing candidates in local elections and echo the Chinese government’s official line. Those who speak out can be punished or even forced out.

China and the United States are clashing over the future of Hong Kong, and global businesses are caught in the middle. President Donald Trump on Friday said he would begin rolling back the special trade and financial privileges that the United States extends to Hong Kong after Chinese leaders pushed through the plan to enact the national security law, which critics fear will curtail the city’s independent judicial system and civil liberties.

Hong Kong’s success as a global financial hub stems from its status as a bridge between China’s economic miracle and the rest of the world. Now that balance is looking increasingly precarious.

Protests erupted last year after Hong Kong’s unpopular Beijing-backed government tried to give Chinese authorities more say in the city’s affairs. As it has pressured business to take its side, China has used access to its vast market as an incentive to toe the Communist Party line.

Jason Ng was punished by his former employer for writing his political views on his Facebook page. PHOTO: NYTIMES

“We’ve seen a rapid deterioration in free expression in Hong Kong since the anti-government protests began,” said Jason Ng, a former lawyer for BNP Paribas, the French bank.

Cathay Pacific, the Hong Kong-based airline, drew headlines late last year when it fired employees for voicing views that angered Chinese authorities.

Four of the world’s biggest accounting firms condemned the Hong Kong protests and distanced themselves from employees who supported them.

Ng was punished by his former employer for writing his political views on his Facebook page, using the phrase “monkey see, monkey do” to complain about pro-Chinese demonstrators. The comments, which were later taken down, were heavily criticized in China’s state media and on the Chinese internet. BNP apologized and pledged to take immediate action. Ng then left the bank.

“There is this awful environment now,” said Ng, who has co-authored a book about the pressure in Hong Kong called “Unfree Speech”.

“The whole banking industry, at least Chinese-funded banks, face quite a lot of pressure from China.”

Something similar happened to Ka-chung Law, a high-profile economist at Bank of Communications, a state-backed Chinese bank. For two decades, Law said he never felt any topic was off-limits.

Last summer, as violence flared, Law was told not to talk about the role that the political chaos was having on the local economy. It was a difficult proposition. He could see it was having a direct impact.

Then in early October, Law said, he e-mailed an article to his team that was critical of China and discussed ways in which the United States could punish Beijing economically. One of his bosses called him in.

The bank distanced itself from the article. Law’s note had come from his work e-mail, therefore implicating the bank. “That day I was told, ‘This is your view,'” he said. “I was not the author of the article, but I didn’t want to argue.”

Law said he was told to resign. He did. “I don’t want to stay in that kind of environment,” he said, “and I don’t think I deserve to stay in the position if I keep my mouth shut.” The bank declined to comment.

Increasingly, multinationals have found themselves in Beijing’s censorship crosshairs. The NBA was thrust into the harsh spotlight last year after the general manager of the Houston Rockets wrote a message on Twitter in support of the Hong Kong protesters. State media acted swiftly in retaliation, canceling the broadcast of preseason games.

Coach, Givenchy, and Versace have also been forced to apologize for selling clothes with designs that suggested Hong Kong was separate from China.

Last week, as Beijing pushed on with plans to implement its national security law in Hong Kong, pro-Beijing groups fanned out across the city in search of support. According to some local workers, their bosses helped in the effort.

Managers at Chiyu Banking Corp., a local bank owned by Xiamen International Bank, sent a WhatsApp message to employees asking them to sign a petition, according to a complaint filed by the Hong Kong Financial Industry Employees General Union. Once they had done so, the complaint said, they were told to screenshot their signature and share it.

Similar instructions were sent to employees at Wing Lung Bank, according to the union. Workers at other banks said they had received similar messages, said Ka-wing Kwok, the union’s chairman, but the union was unable to verify them.

Chiyu Banking and Wing Lung Bank did not respond to requests for comment. Hong Kong regulators declined to comment.

“Such behavior caused a chilling effect among employees,” the union wrote in letters to Hong Kong authorities.

“Employees could not help worrying that if they do not obey the instructions of their superiors, they might either be singled out by the company or their personal work performance evaluation would be affected in the future.”

Source: https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/in-hong-kong-china-threatens-businesses-and-workers

The post In Hong Kong, China threatens businesses and workers first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

Chinese lawmakers approved a proposal for sweeping new national security legislation in Hong Kong, defying a threat by U.S. President Donald Trump to respond strongly to a measure that democracy advocates say will curb essential freedoms in the city.

The National People’s Congress, China’s rubber-stamp legislature, approved the draft decision by a vote of 2,878-1 on Thursday at its annual session in Beijing, with six abstentions. Chinese officials could now take months to sort out the details of laws banning subversion, secession, terrorism, and foreign interference before they’re given to Hong Kong’s Beijing-backed administration to promulgate.

The move to bypass the semi-autonomous city’s local Legislative Council has alarmed Hong Kong’s pro-democracy activists and opposition politicians. It risks spawning yet more protests in the city and could potentially prompt companies to flee if the laws undermine the independent judiciary in the Asian financial hub.

The Trump administration on Wednesday took the significant step of saying it could no longer certify Hong Kong’s autonomy from China, which was promised before the British handed the city back in 1997. The move could trigger a range of actions by the Trump administration, from sanctions on Chinese officials to revoking the city’s special trading status with the U.S.

President Donald Trump, asked about the possible sanctions, said Tuesday his administration was “doing something now” that he would unveil this week.

“Hong Kong does not continue to warrant treatment under United States laws in the same manner as U.S. laws were applied to Hong Kong before July 1997,” Secretary of State Michael Pompeo said in announcing the decision. “No reasonable person can assert today that Hong Kong maintains a high degree of autonomy from China, given facts on the ground.”

The plan to enact the national security legislation was first announced in Beijing late last week, with Chinese officials saying it was needed to stem sometimes-violent protests that hit the city last year. They argued that Hong Kong’s lawmakers had 23 years to pass the legislation, which is mandated under Hong Kong’s mini-constitution called the Basic Law.

“All of the rights and freedoms enjoyed by Hong Kong people and international investors will remain unchanged,” Hong Kong’s government said in a statement on Wednesday. It said the laws wouldn’t erode the rule of law, an independent judiciary or freedom of expression.

Hong Kong’s democracy camp isn’t convinced, however. While last year’s protests all but stopped during the pandemic, demonstrators came out multiple times since the announcement on the laws, defying police who are still limiting public gatherings.

Source: https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2020/05/28/asia-pacific/politics-diplomacy-asia-pacific/china-approves-hong-kong-security-legislation/#.Xs9sjKhKiUk

The post China approves Hong Kong security legislation, defying Trump first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

UNITED NATIONS (AFP) – Washington on Wednesday (May 27) requested an emergency UN meeting over a controversial security law China has proposed for Hong Kong, but Beijing refused to allow it to proceed, according to US diplomats.

The US spelled out its desire for the Security Council session, saying it was “deeply concerned” by Beijing’s move, which would ban “sedition” and other perceived offenses in the international finance hub.

Hong Kong activists say that the proposed law effectively abolishes the basic freedoms enjoyed in the city since it was returned to China by the British in 1997.

It will “fundamentally undermine Hong Kong’s high degree of autonomy and freedoms as guaranteed under the Sino-British Joint Declaration of 1984, which was registered with the UN as a legally binding treaty,” Washington’s UN mission said in a statement.

“This is a matter of urgent global concern that implicates international peace and security,” the statement continued.

But, it said, China has “has refused to allow this virtual meeting to proceed.”

Thanks to new coronavirus-era procedures, Security Council videoconferences must be agreed upon by all 15 members, though normally a meeting can only be contested if a member convinces eight others to join the protest in a procedural vote.

“This is another example of the Chinese Communist Party’s fear of transparency and international accountability for its actions,” the US statement said.

China’s ambassador to the UN Zhang Jun responded in a tweet Wednesday evening, saying the US’s request was “baseless.”

“Legislation on national security for Hong Kong is purely China’s internal affairs,” he said. “It has nothing to do with the mandate of the Security Council.”

The Beijing legislature is expected on Thursday to move forward on the law, bypassing Hong Kong’s own lawmaking body.

The US had already announced earlier on Wednesday that Hong Kong would no longer enjoy the autonomy promised by China under US law, opening the door to potential trade retaliation.

Source: https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/china-refuses-security-council-meeting-on-hong-kong

The post China refuses Security Council meeting on Hong Kong first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

A foreign ministry statement Thursday repeated heated condemnations of the laws and said China will counteract. It said all the people of Hong Kong and China oppose the move.

It´s still unclear, however, how China will respond exactly.

Trump signed the bills, which were approved by near-unanimous consent in the House and Senate, even as he expressed some concerns about complicating the effort to work out a trade deal with China´s President Xi Jinping.

“I signed these bills out of respect for President Xi, China, and the people of Hong Kong,” Trump said in a statement. “They are being enacted in the hope that Leaders and Representatives of China and Hong Kong will be able to amicably settle their differences leading to long term peace and prosperity for all.”

Congress approved the bills last week following months of unrest in the semi-autonomous Chinese city. Before Wednesday´s signing announcement, Trump would only commit to giving the measures a “hard look.”

Office workers and pro-democracy protesters hold up their hands to represent their five demands wanted from the government as protests continue in Central district of Hong Kong, Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2019. A major tunnel in Hong Kong reopened Wednesday as a weeklong police siege of a nearby university campus appeared to be winding down, closing one of the more violent chapters in the long-running anti-government protests in the Chinese territory. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)

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China´s foreign ministry called the laws a “naked hegemonic action” that seriously interfered in Hong Kong and China´s internal affairs, violated international law and “fundamental norms of international relations.”

“The U.S. side ignored facts, turned black to white, and blatantly gave encouragement to violent criminals who smashed and burned, harmed innocent city residents, trampled on the rule of law and endangered social order,” the statement said.

The laws´ basic intent is to undermine Hong Kong´s prosperity and stability along with the “historical progress of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.”

It called the measures “extremely evil in nature and dangerous in motive.”

“We advise the U.S. not to act incautiously, otherwise China will be required to counteract resolutely and all the consequences created by this will have to be borne by the U.S. side,” the statement said.

The two countries are currently locked in a trade war and have deep differences over China´s claims to the South China Sea and Taiwan, human rights issues and accusations of Chinese industrial espionage.

The first bill Trump signed mandates sanctions on Chinese and Hong Kong officials who carry out human rights abuses and requires an annual review of the favorable trade status that Washington grants Hong Kong.

Another bill prohibits export to Hong Kong police of certain nonlethal munitions, including tear gas, pepper spray, rubber bullets, water cannons, stun guns and tasers.

The munitions bill was passed unanimously, while Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky was the sole House member to oppose the human rights bill.

Trump acknowledged last week that he was weighing the ramifications of signing the bill.

“Look, we have to stand with Hong Kong,” Trump said in an interview on “Fox & Friends.” He continued: “But I´m also standing with President Xi. He´s a friend of mine. He´s an incredible guy.”

Democratic and Republican lawmakers applauded the signing of the bills. Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., said it “finally sends a clear and unequivocal message to the people of Hong Kong: We are with you.”

Sen. Jim Risch, an Idaho Republican, and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee said the bills are “an important step forward in holding the Chinese Communist Party accountable for its erosion of Hong Kong´s autonomy and its repression of fundamental human rights.”

Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., who sponsored the House human rights bill, said Xi “should understand that the U.S. is not kidding about human rights. Beating, torturing, and jailing of democracy activists is wrong and this historic legislation lets China know that respecting fundamental human rights is paramount.”

Activists hailed Trump´s action.

“I know that many people in Hong Kong are happy that the U.S. government has passed a new bill,” said Figo Chan, a 23-year-old Hong Kong protester who was honored with the John McCain Prize for Leadership at the Halifax International Security Forum in Canada last weekend.

“No one wants to die and no one wants to be hurt,” Chan said. “I hope that citizens of many different countries can in their own way fight for democracy.”

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Associated Press writers Aamer Madhani in Washington and Rob Gillies in Toronto contributed to this report.

President Donald Trump gestures after speaking at a campaign rally Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2019, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

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Source: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/ap/article-7733807/Trump-signs-bills-support-Hong-Kong-protesters.html

[Disclaimer]

The post Trump signs bills in support of Hong Kong; China furious first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

The post Pompeo talks Hong Kong, Israeli settlements in West Bank in press briefing first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

The so-called battle for Hong Kong is still raging. Over the weekend, the capitalist entrepot witnessed its 22nd straight week of protests against Beijing’s heavy hand.

While the demonstrations are both smaller and more violent than when they first erupted five months ago to protest a law (now withdrawn) that would have allowed extraditions from Hong Kong to Mainland China — this weekend’s flare-up saw numerous stores smashed and even a stabbing in a shopping mall — their longevity has been extraordinary.

In 1989, Tiananmen Square had been occupied for barely a month when the tanks rolled in. Other mass movements across the world have fizzled in a matter of weeks as protesters were suppressed, placated or simply grew bored.

Hong Kong’s defiant spirit — its will to battle — is remarkable. But the war is over. And China won.

Five months ago, the Hong Kong protests looked to many like a genuine challenge to Beijing, one that could shake the foundations of Communist rule. The extraordinary mass rallies that characterized the beginning of the movement, with roughly 1 million people taking to the streets in a city of only 7 million, were by far the most profound challenge to the Chinese Communist Party since 1989.

Source: https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2019/nov/3/hong-kong-still-battling-but-china-has-won-the-war/

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