The End of an Era 

ANALYS: Joseph Yu-shek Cheng är en av grundarna till den demokratiska rörelsen i Hongkong. Cheng har tidigare i Mänsklig Säkerhet beskrivit hur regimen i Beijing alltmer stoppat och kontrollerat friheten i Hongkong. Detta går stick i stäv med avtalet när Storbritannien återlämnade Hongkong till fastlands-Kina då territoriet enligt modellen ”två Kina ”garanterades (ett omfattande) oberoende visavi fastlandet. 

Cheng skriver här våren 2025 i en exklusiv text för nätmagasinet Mänsklig säkerhet om hur vi nu ser slutet på den demokratiska eran i Hongkong, efter åratal av konsekventa angrepp på självstyret från fastlands-Kina. Hongkong oberoende attackeras också indirekt av att Trump-administrationen som i sitt tullkrig mot Kina i sina svepande angrepp inte skiljer på fastlandet och Hongkong. Om det är av okunskap eller avsiktligt är oklart.

Bild: Demonstration for democracy 2019 in Hong Kong

Hong Kong today in early 2025 is not much different from any major city in Mainland China. The close integration with the Pearl River Delta means that Hong Kong people are happy to spend their holidays across the border and shop there. This severely dampens consumption in the territory and lowers economic growth.  This integration also slowly brings its salaries and property prices close to the level of those in the Pearl River Delta.  

One report indicates that from July 2020 to the end of 2022, at least 400,000 people had left Hong Kong. Its pro-Beijing governmentnow proudly announces that it has been successfully attracting talents from Mainland China. As Chinese officials declared, the Sino-British Joint Declaration which was to secure Hong Kongs independenceis no more than a piece of paper, and this too announced the end of an era for Hong Kong. 

Having existed since 1994, the first pro-democracy political party of Hong Kong finally decided to disband itself on April 13, 2015.  Over 90 percent of the members present in the general meeting held to discuss the party’s future supported the dissolution of the party; and the legal process was completed the next year.  It was reported that several senior members had been warned by Beijing’s “middle men” that refusal to disband would lead to serious consequences.   

In 1994, the Democratic party soon became the largest political party in the legislature. It was formed by the amalgamation of the United Democrats of Hong Kong which appeared in 1990 and Meeting Point established in 1983. The adoption of the term party was perceived as a breakthrough because the Chinese authorities in the 1980s argued that only the Communist Party of China and the Kuomintang could function as political parties in Hong Kong. 

The Democratic Party, a moderate force, became more outspoke

The Democratic Party had always been the moderate force in the territory’s pro-democracy movement. In 2010, Beijing’s Central Liaison Office in Hong Kong entered into negotiations with the Democratic Party on political reforms, and this was severely criticised by the other members of the pro-democracy movement. The young radicals soon seized the initiative in the Occupation Movement in 2014 and the violent protests in 2019.  

The loss of leadership and initiative on the part of the Democratic Party in the 2010s reflected the demise of moderation in the pro-democracy movement. The younger generation did not believe in the gradual road towards democracy, and it did not believe in the Chinese authorities’ willingness to grant Hong Kong genuine democracy. They did not support compromises, and sought confrontations to exert pressure on Beijing. 

Refusal to be controlled by Beijing 

After the promulgation of the National Security Law in 2020 and the revision of the electoral law, apparently the Chinese authorities still desired the political participation of the Democratic Party. The latter ultimately refused to take part in the Legislative Council elections in 2021 because the nomination process was controlled by the establishment. Some pro-Beijing figures even considered this refusal to participate as confrontational. 

Subsequently the Chinese position hardened. In the 2023 District Council elections, the six candidates presented by the Democratic Party failed to secure nominations as they were blocked by the pro-Beijing united front.  The party could not even hold its annual fundraising dinners because no restaurants offered the services. The writing was on the wall, and it realised that there was no public space for a meaningful existence.  

The deterioration in relations between China and the West is probably an important factor.  Beijing has no reason to maintain the liberal facade in the territory. Hong Kong’s political figures have been sanctioned by the United States and some Western countries for being puppets of Beijing; and the Hong Kong government has retaliated. 

Worse still, in the tariff war in 2025 between the United States and China, Hong Kong has been treated as part of China now and the “one country, two systems” model has increasingly been ignored by the Trump-administration.  

Hong Kong people probably do not feel the disappearance of the Democratic Party in any significant way today because political opposition and meaningful political participation have ceased to exist since the National Security Law. The Hong Kong Professional Teachers’ Union and the Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions were both dissolved in 2021. 

The Hong Kong Journalists Association is struggling to survive; it too encounters the problem of not being able to find a restaurant to host its annual fundraising dinner.  

The Legislative Council elections scheduled this year is obviously a non-event, not only will there be no competition and no attractive platforms, people hardly know more than a few names.  The media find it almost impossible to report on the proceedings of the legislature because there is nothing interesting to discuss.  

The present Hong Kong government lacks credibility 

The absence of political opposition and even political dialogues has not improved the performance and efficiency of the Hong Kong government. The political establishment has lost its credibility and the community’s confidence. Certainly it is not a good sign that the Secretary for Security is the most outspoken official besides the Chief Executive.  

Joseph Yu-shek Cheng is one of the founders of the Democratic Party in Hong Kong

Editor: Gerd Johnsson-Latham