Hong Kong lawmaker Emily Lau writes to Chinese leader Xi Jinping, asking him to look into the case of the five abducted book publishers. The chances of a response are zero. 
Acknowledging the existence of far-away individual mortals is not part of the imperial style. And Emily is not just another of the Zhao family’s 1.3 billion nonentity-serfs but an actual outcast – forbidden (like many of her pro-democracy peers) to enter the Mainland for refusing to kowtow.
Meanwhile, pro-Beijing veteran Tsang Yok-sing invites Chinese officials to categorically deny that Mainland security services kidnapped one of the five, Lee Bo, in Hong Kong, and state openly that nothing took place that would infringe the Basic Law or ‘One Country Two Systems’. His phrasing is interesting. We can read it as indulgent, apparently giving Mainland authorities the benefit of the doubt. Or we can see it as a highly loaded question, of the ‘Have you stopped beating your wife?’ variety. Again, there will be no response: as a loyal follower of the Communist Party, he is supposed to remain silent or repeat the official line, not publicly raise ideas.
Official insistence that Lee Bo is a PRC citizen and Mainland media commentary that the publishers threatened national stability contribute to overwhelming, if technically circumstantial, evidence that China has kidnapped the five and is holding them. Beijing is looking for a face-saving way out. Most people in Hong Kong – even in the loyalist camp – want the Chinese authorities to sweat and feel some humiliation, even pain. The regime overstepped the mark in snatching someone off the street on this side of the border. Such a violation paves the way for the whole one-party Leninist package: jailed lawyers, forced 
confessions, harassment of families, show trials, asset seizures, Internet censorship, and the end of Hong Kong’s whole reason to exist.
But not so fast! One person, at least, feels sorry for the Chinese government in this moment of embarrassment. South China Morning Post columnist Michael Chugani urges us to ‘allow Beijing breathing space to put things right’. Do not ‘milk it to fan further animosity’ to tyrannical dictators who order kidnappings in our streets, because, you know, they have feelings too.
Thought for the day: there used to be a time when banned Taiwan authors were published in Hong Kong.
Throwaway line from this morning’s policy address: “The current property price and rental levels are still beyond what people can afford, and have distorted the values of the younger generation.”
That’s hysterical.
Grades grubbing, money grubbing, shutting up and working your ass off for 30 years to own a concrete box, training your children to be performing monkeys, caring about nothing but the stock market, nice cars, and brand name handbags. Those are normal Hong Kong values.
Wanting things like democracy, room to breathe, and your own soul. That’s distorted. The deviants.
You deserve a Bauhinia for following the careers of all these non- entities. But I suppose someone has to do it. I notice that criminals like Raffy Hui are not stripped of their honours even when handed a long sentence for corruuption. Why is this? I think we should be told. And is Raymond Kwok still a JP? Surely not.
Poor old Chugani! Wouldn’t it to have been charitable to put him out to pasture long ago?
You’re no doubt right to keep plugging at this issue, which should have everyone in HK shaking in their boots.
However… In the eyes of the wide world out there, befuddled by decades of propaganda, China has simply exercised sovereignty and the allegation, without a shred of evidence, amounts to merely moving its citizens over an internal “boundary”, which is porous at the best of times.
The British are utterly powerless in this matter; and a few wavering erstwhile supporters in the neocolony are likely to just reinforce their determination.
I can’t see China giving an inch: their reaction may be be similar to that after Tiananmen.
Spotted Emily Loudmouth striding along Ice House Street this morning, in full Boudicca mode. A lout dared to mutter something at her, only to earn a fearsome stare and haughty head-flick. No wonder she can’t keep a husband.
Yes, because out of all the things Emily has ever done in her life, the most important thing is her ability to keep a man. By the way, that’s what manacles are for.
Speaking of performing monkeys and obedient, yappy dogs: Chugani
What happened to Winston Poon?
A Fable for Today
A maiden sat milking an ill-tempered cow. A wise old man happened to pass by.
“Why are you milking that angry cow?”
“Because I want some milk!” she pertly replied.
He noticed the cow’s tail was swinging ominously.
“I’m afraid there’s going to be a great wind soon,” he said.
Suddenly, the cow’s tail whirled round like a great fan, and it blew the maiden’s gay new bonnet far, far away, into the filthy cesspool.
“Now you see,” said the wise old man –
[Moral] Don’t milk it to fan animosity.
What happened to Yonden ? I don’t read the rag anymore but I don’t hear about The Suit at all. Maybe he didn’t pass the 3-months probation ?
@jailed lawyers,……. Good. The whole Western world needs a few more of these
@forced confessions, ……………which used to go on all the time under the former British administration and probably still does
@ harassment of families, ……like the HK press do all the time when grieving relatives have cameras shoved in their faces in hospital wards and ambulances
@show trials,….. we have our fair share of these too. Sometimes conducted by lawyers on the steps of police stations while pretending to make ‘press statements’ about their “innocent” clients who have just assaulted police doing their duty at illegal demonstrations blocking public thoroughfares.
@” Internet censorship”…… oh dear ! Without it you would miss your pornography or be unable to download the latest moves free of paying royalties
@”assets seized”…….. believe me they deserve it.
@and the end of Hong Kong’s whole reason to exist…………. I can see no better game plan…. providing us with a chance to live in affordable housing, cleaner, wider and greener streets, better and cheaper public transport like they have in the Mainland………… all in exchange for merely promising not to topple the sovereign state. Seems a fair deal. Hongkongers should take it.
@Qian Jin – and not to express opinions the sovereign state doesn’t like; not to have religi0ous beliefs the sovereign state doesn’t like; not to campaign for workers’ rights or safe food or many other things the sovereign state doesn’t want you to make a fuss about; not to make your own choice of how many children you have; not to complain when corrupt local officials of the sovereign state seize your land illegally; not to get any chance of a fair trial if you do anything the sovereign state doesn’t like; shall I go on? Get real. Who appointed them sovereign anyway?
Hahaha! Qian Jin. You’re such a card!
I was wondering what had happened to you. Only the other day, someone in here mentioned that we hadn’t seen that much of you recently, and now lo and behold, here you are again regaling us with your own inimitable brand of humour.
Most of the people who comment in here are far too serious for their own good, so the rest of us rely on guys like you to brighten our days with a little chuckle.
Keep it up, old chap, and, as the old saying goes, “Don’t be a stranger!”
@Qian Jin: An ellipsis consists of three points, thus: …
A quick squeeze on the trigger should do the trick. You don’t need to empty the whole magazine.