Hongkong

Hong Kong new Chief Executive: Why John Lee will lead Hong Kong to an even darker future

As a Hong Kong activist in exile, it is a light relief to learn that the disputed Chief Executive Carrie Lam – who ignited the momentous pro-democracy protests in 2019 - is leaving the office. However, a new Chief Executive does not mean an onset of normalization of the Hong Kong we previously knew, nor will the new government end the clampdown on civil society. Quite the opposite. The person succeeding Carrie Lam implies Beijing’s agenda of more oppression in Hong Kong over the next five years.

Carrie Lam’s legacy

For anyone following the developments in Hong Kong over the last years, it comes as no surprise that Carrie Lam did not get a green light from Beijing to run for her second term. She has failed many, if not all, Beijing’s expectations: She failed to push forward the amendment of the extradition law with China. Her uncompromising approach to the anti-government protests in 2019 triggered more Hong Kong people to side with the pro-democracy movement. By the beginning of May, her poor handling of the COVID-19 pandemic has led to over 9,000 deaths within only five months, and severely jeopardized Hong Kong’s reputation as an international financial centre. According to a report published in March 2022 by European Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, nearly half of European businesses are pondering relocating in the next years. 

Under Lam’s administration, Beijing – in violation of the “One Country, Two Systems” principle - has blatantly undermined Hong Kong’s autonomy. In June 2020, the National People’s Congress has directly inserted the notorious National Security Law for Hong Kong. In the following year, Beijing has imposed a “patriot only” electoral reform in Hong Kong, according to which only those candidates approved by Beijing will be allowed to run for offices. As a result of the new rules, any elections - whether it is for the District Councils, Legislative Council or Chief Executive - become nothing but a sham.

John Lee: Beijing’s enforcer

On 8 May 2022, a government-vetted electoral committee chose the former security chef, John Lee Ka-chiu, to become the next leader of the island city. Lee has earned a reputation as a hard-liner by overseeing violent crackdowns on anti-government protests in 2019 and through the extensive use of the draconian National Security Law Beijing imposed in 2020 to persecute democratic dissents. Equipped with the capability of implementing a harder line and further crackdown in the city, Lee is ideal - in Beijing’s eye – to further achieve what is often expressed from the pro-Beijing camp as “political and social stability after a period of turbulence”. It is particularly important since the 20th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party will take place at the end of this year.

The fact that, unlike all of the previous Chief Executive elections, Lee had no opponents, implies that Beijing does not even need to bother to keep up a democratic appearance of Hong Kong.

Throughout Lee’s career with the security services, he has always been hostile to civil society and anybody supportive of the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong. In 2019 when I disclosed the approval of my asylum application in Germany, Lee accused Germany’s decision of being groundless and imprudent. He affirmed that the Hong Kong police force will go after me “by any possible means”.

With the National Security Law, the incumbent government has arrested almost all the pro-democracy politician and activists. Most of my fellows in Hong Kong are either in jail or awaiting trial. Apart from political figures, the national security police also persecute media outlets and civil society organizations critical of the government. Apple Daily and Stand News, popular pro-democracy media outlets, were forced to cease activity last year. The space for opposition, if there are any, is increasingly limited.

New tools for suppression

Despite having this powerful law in its hands, Beijing doesn’t seem to be content with the number of tools they have for oppressing the freedoms and rights of Hong Kong people. During his sham election campaign in April this year, Lee reiterated that he will prioritize domestic national security legislation through Article 23 of the city’s Basic Law. The article states that the Hong Kong government “shall enact laws on its own to prohibit any act of treason, secession, sedition, subversion against the Central People’s Government”.

In an interview with mainland media “Phoenix TV” last year summer, Mr. Lee, the then Chief  Secretary for Administration said that the existing National Security Law is far from sufficient to safeguard national security. Therefore, he is preparing domestic security legislation using Article 23 which will enable the government to tackle the toughest and the most extreme situation. “The city”, said Lee, “needs to stay vigilant for underground terrorist activities”. He added that support for Hong Kong independence and violence still exist. Therefore, there is a pressing need to stop people from spreading these ideas, Lee believes.

Unlike Carrie Lam, who comes from the civil servant class, John Lee - as a career policeman – doesn’t have a power base except the security services. He is not aligned with the executive office and civil servant class, nor with local tycoons. This makes him reliant on Beijing’s power and patronage.

Some have even gone so far as to speculate that Lee’s steady advancement as a mid-level career policeman to a political appointee handling the city’s security portfolio and then as Carrie’s deputy as Chief Secretary, is down to his secret membership of the Chinese Communist Party and the active support of Beijing over the years. 

In normal cases, a government’s lack of local support would only hinder the development and implementation of policies. However, Hong Kong is no longer a normal state. What Beijing expects from the head of the Hong Kong Government is absolute loyalty to the Chinese Communist Party.  The role of the Chief Executive has switched from the leadership of one of the global financial centers of the world to the top loyalist of Beijing, through which the central government can now maximize its influence in Hong Kong.

Ray Wong is a Hong Kong activist in exile, granted asylum by Germany in 2018. Currently, he is studying in Göttingen.