Has China Become Less Friendly?

As China tightens its grip on the economic development process, Hong Kong friends are less likely to get involved in future Hong Kong affairs. China’s growing economic power has resulted in its economy growing much faster than any Western country. This growth has brought wealth to everyone, but unfortunately, so has the prevalence of open Chinese capitalism, corruption and less-than-democratic political processes. These facts often upset and repel people from the “protestors” of Hong Kong.

The recent Hong Kong demonstrations are still hugely popular with the Chinese-speaking population. But increasingly more radical protesters are demanding that China give everyone a fair deal in the business market. They want the freedoms that they have been deprived of for so many years. But even though Chinese business is booming, many Hong Kong people are still demanding greater economic opportunity and freedom. So, do we really want Chinese companies taking over our markets?

I believe that it is impossible for China to deliver on its promises to the Chinese community. It is not realistic to expect China to open up the market and give everybody a chance to earn a living. Hong Kong will continue to be a work-place of choice for Chinese expatriates to make a living, but it will also remain a free market and will continue to attract people from every corner of the world. A recent editorial in the South China Morning Post questioned whether” Beijing can keep its promises to the Umbrella Revolution group and Hong Kong’s democratic leaders”. And the article continued by stating, “Weighing the benefits and risks of Chinese growth will be an important challenge for future Hong Kong leadership”.

However, I disagree with the view that Hong Kong can only become a less corrupt and less autocratic city if the central government removes the control of the business sector. The current model of economic management in China is such that the ruling party has full reign over all industries and it will be difficult if not impossible for them to move forward to a system whereby the interests of the private sector and the working class are both safeguarded. In fact, I believe it would be more likely that Hong Kong would suffer more economic problems as a result of continuing trade and commerce with China than whatever benefits they might enjoy from having fewer constraints on their economy. I also don’t see the economic benefits of a closer relationship between the Chinese business elite and the Chinese Government outweigh the loss of individual freedoms and economic hardships that would result.

There has been a lot of talk recently about the future of the Chinese economy and their ability to sustain its rapid growth. Many have argued that Hong Kong is at risk of being a victim of the massive global slowdown and the Chinese expatriates who currently reside there would find it very difficult to emigrate. My own view is that the economic model in China is based on too much state intervention and the introduction of too many free-enterprise institutions at the same time has created a situation where there is too much corruption within the system and there are too many vested interests. These problems do not exist in Hong Kong and the free market provides a level playing field so that entrepreneurs have the chance to succeed. Ultimately, if you look at the overall picture, Hong Kong is still the strongest economic performer in Asia and we must remember that in the recent economic slowdown in the United States and other European countries also struggled to keep their currency stable and the recession didn’t seem to have any impact on the housing market.

For me, the most important aspect of this issue is that we have to get a sense of the reality that exists in China today and one way of doing this is to read the daily newspaper. Many of the stories that appear in the Chinese press are fabricated and printed for the purposes of selling information to the West and the main section of the Chinese economy is the media. A lot of the stories that appear to focus on the scandals and the leadership struggles within the Chinese government. However, these are the struggles that Hong Kong should be concerned about because these are the conflicts that drive our friendship between China and the United States. In fact, I personally believe that we should take a more aggressive approach to trying to improve the relationship between China and the United States and Hong Kong needs to be more careful not to be taken in by whatever gossip that ends up appearing in the Chinese media.