Beijing’s push for closer mainland economic ties with Macau and Hong Kong: why is only one city being asked to extend ‘one country, two systems’?
- Under a scheme for Hengqin, the heads of Guangdong province and Macau will decide major plans, but daily governing will be left up to the latter
- But an expansion for Qianhai in Shenzhen will largely benefit Hong Kong by offering new economic opportunities, but no direct control across the border
Beijing’s two new master plans to forge closer mainland Chinese links with Hong Kong and Macau take very different approaches to furthering the “one country, two systems” model of governance, analysts and pro-China veterans have said.
Macau would serve as a showcase for the experiment of extending the one country, two systems principle, as the plan would allow the city to apply its governance in neighbouring Hengqin on the mainland over economic affairs.
But the proposal for Hong Kong was focused more on providing growth opportunities from the nearby Qianhai economic zone in Shenzhen without any room to extend governance rules, analysts noted.
There also appeared to be greater latitude in allowing Hong Kong to decide on the kinds of opportunities it would grab, and this in turn would depend on the willingness of the city’s government and businesses to open up, they added.
“Macau’s plan focuses more on institutional breakthroughs, while Qianhai’s development plan, which benefits Hong Kong businesses, stresses economic and technical growth, and takes a more conservative approach on breakthroughs in systems and rules,” Tian Feilong, director of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau Studies, said.
