Protests show Carrie Lam should offer her resignation, and Beijing should accept it. But who would ever want her job?

The present crisis shows Hong Kong needs a new leader, one who respects China and is respected in China. However, this leader must also fight for Hong Kong, and not merely tell Beijing what it wants to hear

Kevin Rafferty

Published: 8:15am, 15 Dec 2019

Why you can trust SCMP

Wanted: a bold, honest, imaginative leader to rescue an old, respected business. The enterprise was renowned internationally, but has fallen on hard times under wooden, unimaginative managers.

It now stands on the verge of bankruptcy with open fighting between shareholders and stakeholders involving security guards and regular demonstrations by disgruntled workers.

The problems are compounded by a controlling shareholder who does not understand local sensitivities and the inequality between privileged shareholders and managers on one hand and ordinary people on the other.

Interested parties should apply to ... And here’s the rub: where and to whom should anyone with delusions of running Hong Kong apply?

The city’s future looks increasingly problematic. When almost 3 million people voted in district council elections and ejected pro-establishment candidates, hopes soared that this could be an opportunity for a fresh start. Two weeks later, that seems like more wishful thinking.

Beijing, surprised by the results, suggested foreign agents had meddled with the election, insulting voters and misunderstanding the value Hong Kong should add to China.

Officials suggested Hong Kong should emulate Macau, which has less than 9 per cent of Hong Kong’s population and was for decades effectively ruled by China, even when under the Portuguese flag. Hong Kong’s value to China and to Asia and the world is much greater than being a Las Vegas playground for the rich.

Sorry Beijing, but Hong Kong will never be more like Macau

Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor promised to “reflect on” the district election results, but has offered no signs of fresh thinking.

Police revelations of discoveries of a semi-automatic pistol, ammunition and knives and, separately, two home-made bombs with 10kg of explosives invite questions: would demonstrators be mad enough and sacrifice the high moral ground, or were they planted?

Police officers display evidence of two suspected home-made explosive devices found at Wah Yan College Hong Kong in Wan Chai, on December 9. Photo: K.Y. Cheng

All sides seem oblivious to the damage to Hong Kong: recession; a 43 per cent drop in tourist arrivals; shops trashed, businesses shut in fear; the lives of millions disrupted; demonstrations week after week, mostly peaceful but always on the edge of violence; 6,000 people arrested, aged from 11 to 83; 12,000 tear gas canisters fired by police; massive losses for the MTR. Are some protesters cherishing delusions of weaponising Hong Kong as a way of ending communist rule in China?

Sending in Chinese troops would be messy and would attract international opprobrium and sanctions just when Beijing doesn’t want any new pressures. Far easier to show who is boss by using Lam to refuse concessions and remorselessly pressuring vulnerable businesses. Beijing brought Cathay Pacific Airways to heel by getting rid of its chief executive and chairman, but that has demoralised the airline and was dangerous interference in Hong Kong’s commercial freedom.

Beijing’s latest salvo at Hong Kong’s courts is its most chilling yet

Rumours of loyalty oaths for all civil servants and Chinese comments that Hong Kong’s judges have no business giving an opinion on anything relating to the Basic Law reinforce the view that Beijing is determined to end Hong Kong’s upstart behaviour.

Let me indulge in some positive wishful thinking: Lam should tell President Xi Jinping that she insists on standing down immediately, and publicly recommends a successor be chosen through a more consultative process.

Pro-democracy legislators protest against the process by which the chief executive is elected, during the Chief Executive Election Forum on March 19, 2017. Photo: AFP

This would mean dispensing with the farce of election by 1,200 people, but Beijing is reportedly considering a new “consultative” choice. Let the consultations include Hong Kong this time. Lam should point out that Beijing’s record in selecting chief executives has been dismal.

If Lam is not prepared to face Xi, then this newspaper should be brave and suggest candidates. The chief executive must be someone who understands, cares and is prepared to fight for Hong Kong. She or he must also understand Hong Kong’s global role, and why it is important to maintain its autonomy.

City in protest turmoil going through the five stages of grief

The chief executive must obviously accept that Hong Kong is part of China. Equally important, the person must be respected in Beijing and understand China’s role in the world.

It’s easier to say who should not be the next chief executive. Fellow travellers, and members of China’s consultative bodies, who have cravenly misinformed Beijing with whatever they think China wants to hear, should be excluded. So too should civil servants and tycoons who clamoured for the policies destroying Hong Kong’s economic and social fabric.

Andrew Sheng, chief adviser to the China Banking Regulatory Cammission, speaks during a financial cooperation conference in July 2016. Would Sheng’s decades of public service and financial background prepare him for the job of chief executive? Photo: K. Y. Cheng

The new chief executive’s remit must be wide: repair the immediate damage and get people talking. That means getting to grips with difficult social, economic and political issues, including land, housing and education, the grip of the rich and powerful on decision-making, how to offer a place for democracy in a sophisticated city, and how Hong Kong can best contribute to China.

Who? I suggest Andrew Sheng. He has held senior positions in Malaysia and Hong Kong (chairman of the Securities and Futures Commission), as well as at the World Bank. He is respected in China and chief adviser to China’s Banking Regulatory Commission. His columns betray a deep understanding of the urgent problems facing Hong Kong, China, the world and Planet Earth.

Lam’s successor is too important to be left to an unholy huddle of power brokers who helped to create Hong Kong’s current mess. Sheng may not thank me for suggesting his name: let him offer an alternative.

Kevin Rafferty lived and worked in Hong Kong for many years and is author of City on the Rocks: Hong Kong’s uncertain future

Post