Vehemently refuting in record time

The UK Foreign Office’s latest six-monthly report (for first-half 2022) to Parliament on Hong Kong… 

Hong Kong’s political landscape continued to be remodelled to allow participation from ‘patriots only’. Space for political opposition and dissent reduced almost entirely. John Lee was selected unopposed as the new Chief Executive. Reprisals continued against democratic politicians. The Hong Kong Government attempted to use the NSL to extend political censorship overseas.

And I was wondering if it would appear by 7 this morning – in its same-day touchy response, the government…

…vehemently refutes the slandering remarks and ill-intentioned political attacks on the HKSAR under the successful application of the “one country, two systems” principle in the so-called United Kingdom Six-monthly Report on Hong Kong: January to June 2022 (Report). The HKSAR is an inalienable part of the People’s Republic of China. The HKSAR Government urges again the United Kingdom (UK) to respect the basic norms governing international relations and stop interfering in the affairs of the HKSAR.

In court on sedition charges, former Stand News editor defends the reporting of news…

The outlet was also accused of glorifying the arrested candidates by carrying another commentary on the mass arrest from Nathan Law, a self-exiled former lawmaker.

More details here. It seems media should report the right sort of news.

Some other things…

Activists convince the Smithsonian to end cultural partnership with the Hong Kong trade office in the US.

Michael Pettis in the SCMP on China’s property woes…

Households who borrow aggressively to buy the largest – and most – flats they can afford become rich far more quickly. Property developers who invent new ways to leverage their land purchases grow faster than their more prudent competitors. Even local governments learn to speculate on ever-rising land sale revenues for their funding, and will reorient their spending to fund projects designed to fuel further rising land sale revenues.

Over time, as the more “prudent” banks, businesses, households and local governments fall behind their competitors, the economy shifts its operations and balance sheets in ways that become increasingly speculative and dependent on rising real estate prices. At some point, which China reached around a decade ago, their speculative behaviour itself becomes a main driver of continued rising prices.

China Daily says it’s too early to come up with an accurate Covid death toll for China – which is no doubt true.

The Diplomat puts Beijing’s Covid U-turn in the context of increasing centralization in China, and foresees Xi Jinping further clamping down on domestic criticism…

What this means is that without further structural reforms, not only will these [local government] problems continue to fester, but China’s “core leadership” may find itself increasingly unable to escape bearing the brunt – or at least a greater share – of criticisms for them. These problems also threaten to be augmented by a more fundamental political issue the COVID-19 crisis has arguably exposed – that the potentially life-long, increasingly autocratic leadership of Xi could well follow the trajectory of others who became unwilling or unable to see the adverse ramifications of ill thought-out policy decisions. 

And, from NPR, Chinese authorities are arresting those involved in the Covid ‘A4’ protests. Quietly…

“The police need a theory to explain away the protests and they are trying to find an organizer to blame,” says a friend of one of the vigil participants arrested.