Security tight in Hong Kong for rare visit of Chinese official

[webfact]

Security tight in Hong Kong for rare visit of Chinese official



"(I will listen to) suggestions and demands of all sectors of society on executing the principle of one country, two systems, self governance, on allowing Hong Kong a high degree of autonomy..."

HONG KONG: -- Tensions are high and security is tight in Hong Kong, for the visit of a top ranking Chinese official.

Zhang Dejiang’s arrival comes amid increasingly strident calls for greater autonomy.

He is officially in this financial hub to attend an economic summit.

“(I will listen to) suggestions and demands of all sectors of society on executing the principle of one country, two systems, self governance, on allowing Hong Kong a high degree of autonomy, how to implement the basic law, and how the country and Hong Kong should develop,” Zhang Dejiang, Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, told the media after touching down.

Thousands of police officers have been mobilised for Zhang’s visit – the first senior Chinese figure to come to Hong Kong since the 2014 Occupy democracy protests.

Following those demonstrations, some activists have been calling for an outright breakaway from China.

But Beijing’s foreign ministry’s said that pushing for independence would harm Hong Kong’s security, prosperity and stability.

-- (c) Copyright Euronews 2016-05-18

[wabothai]

This guy reminds me of chinese folks portrayed in Tintin.

[Publicus]

The guy in the OP is sort of like Speaker of the House except he is the only one of 'em who speaks. Comrade Zhang is the #3 guy in CCP, behind Xi Jinping and PM Li Kejiang.

He is chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress which last year did the following as a part of its job for the CCP....

China’s New National Security Law Under Attack

Military delegates arrive for the National People’s Congress (NPC) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. China’s new national security law passed by the National People’s Congress (NPC) Standing Committee is criticized and rejected. (Mark Ralston/AFP/Getty Images)

HONG KONG—Hongkongers and Taiwanese have criticized and rejected China’s new national security law, which was unanimously passed by the National People’s Congress (NPC) Standing Committee on July 1.

The new law includes Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan for the first time. It has caused some citizens and lawmakers of those places to express concern.

Article 11 states that “to defend the country’s sovereignty, unity and territorial claims, are the collective obligations of all Chinese citizens, including compatriots from Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan.” Article 40 mentions that “the Hong Kong SAR and Macau SAR should fulfill their responsibilities to uphold national security.”

According to some local pro-China media, those who call for “an end to one-party rule” will be prosecuted if they set foot in China. This has prompted legislators to ask for a full clarification from the mainland Chinese and Hong Kong governments.

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/05/chinese-official-visits-hong-kong-tension-160517052748951.html

The Umbrella Revolution that in 2014 took to the streets to oppose CCP interference in HKG democracy has now organised into political parties led by Revolution leaders who are getting votes and are being elected to the legislative council. More elections coming up in the fall/autumn, hence this goon's arrival presently.

Meanwhile the smiling slicker in the OP photo is the HKG Chief Executive Leung Chung-ying and he says nowadays the executive in HKG is supreme to the legislative council, both of which are controlled by Beijing. Less and less control however.

The argument among HKG Pan Democrats is whether to have a referendum on independence soon or to give it ten years of campaigning then have the referendum.

Meanwhile, HKG pan-democrats are being hauled in to court for supposed offenses committed in 2014....

Hong Kong Student Protest Leaders Charged for Actions That Sparked Umbrella Movement

By Associated Press

Student protesters Joshua Wong (centre L) and Nathan Law (centre R) stand outside the Wanchai police station in Hong Kong on August 27, 2015. (Philippe Lopez/AFP/Getty Images

HONG KONG—Hong Kong police charged teenage student leader Joshua Wong on Thursday for his role last year in storming government headquarters, which helped trigger 79 days of pro-democracy street occupations that gripped the Asian financial center.

Wong, whose Scholarism group played a key role in the protests, reported to a police station where he was charged with inciting and participating in an illegal assembly.

The charges came nearly a year after Wong and dozens of student activists stormed a fenced-off courtyard outside government headquarters during an evening rally to protest Beijing’s plan to restrict elections in the semiautonomous Chinese region.

Umbrella Revolution demonstration September 8, 2014 for universal suffrage in Hong Kong beginning 2017.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-36309063

Edited May 18, 2016 by Publicus