Tale of 2 cities: did Xi Jinping shower more praise on Macau’s leader than on Hong Kong’s Carrie Lam?

State leaders appeared relatively restrained in lauding Carrie Lam and the Hong Kong administration’s work on Wednesday, observers say

But in his meeting with Macau leader Ho Iat-seng, Xi appeared more generous with his compliments, saying city had ‘tamed’ Covid-19 and put various systems in place

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President Xi Jinping poses for a photo with Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam on Wednesday. Photo: Xinhua

Published: 9:40pm, 23 Dec 2021Updated: 9:49pm, 23 Dec 2021

Praise that Chinese President Xi Jinping extended to Hong Kong’s leader was carefully couched to avoid being misinterpreted as giving hints on the coming chief executive race, and was instead intended to underline Beijing’s authority over the city, analysts said on Thursday.

Observers also said that compared with the positive remarks made in meetings with Macau’s chief executive, state leaders appeared relatively restrained in lauding Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor and the Hong Kong administration’s work on Wednesday.

Xi, speaking at his first public face-to-face meeting since February last year with a top official from outside mainland China, was positive about Lam’s work over the past year culminating in Sunday’s first Legislative Council election, after Beijing’s revamp of the electoral system. He also said the overhaul had enabled Hongkongers to exercise their democratic rights and be “masters of their own home”.

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Xi meets and praises Lam for Hong Kong Legco poll and Covid-19 work

“The [city] has achieved notable results in its Covid-19 response, steadily recovered its economy and maintained social stability,” Xi said.

“Lam has led the [Hong Kong] government in making systematic changes and improvements to Hong Kong’s electoral system in accordance with relevant decisions of the National People’s Congress [NPC] and relevant legislation of the NPC Standing Committee … The central authorities fully acknowledge the work of Lam and the [city’s] government.”

But in his meeting with Macau leader Ho Iat-seng, Xi appeared more generous with his compliments.