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| Hong Kong’s Democracy Supporters Chafe at Inequality and Beijing’s Sway | Hong Kong’s Democracy Supporters Chafe at Inequality and Beijing’s Sway |
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| HONG KONG — On a recent morning, Agnes Chow, 17, and another teenage activist rode a van through the streets of Hong Kong, urging people through a loudspeaker to vote in an informal referendum for a more democratic way to pick the city’s top leader. But the vote, which has been condemned as illegal by the Chinese government, was about much more than the city’s leadership, she said. | HONG KONG — On a recent morning, Agnes Chow, 17, and another teenage activist rode a van through the streets of Hong Kong, urging people through a loudspeaker to vote in an informal referendum for a more democratic way to pick the city’s top leader. But the vote, which has been condemned as illegal by the Chinese government, was about much more than the city’s leadership, she said. |
| “I think the younger generation feels the future of Hong Kong falls on its shoulders,” said Ms. Chow, who was only 6 months old when Britain returned Hong Kong to China. “The inequality of the society is one of the reasons people have come out to vote. The social issues are tied in because without a democratic system, there is no pressure on the government to change.” | “I think the younger generation feels the future of Hong Kong falls on its shoulders,” said Ms. Chow, who was only 6 months old when Britain returned Hong Kong to China. “The inequality of the society is one of the reasons people have come out to vote. The social issues are tied in because without a democratic system, there is no pressure on the government to change.” |
| A surge of discontent is washing over this harbor city of 7.2 million people, which has long taken pride in its status as an enclave of free enterprise, free speech and independent courts abutting the Chinese mainland. The immediate conflict is about how to elect Hong Kong’s leader, the chief executive. But the underlying resentment voiced by many here is that the city’s political-business machine is rigged against them. | A surge of discontent is washing over this harbor city of 7.2 million people, which has long taken pride in its status as an enclave of free enterprise, free speech and independent courts abutting the Chinese mainland. The immediate conflict is about how to elect Hong Kong’s leader, the chief executive. But the underlying resentment voiced by many here is that the city’s political-business machine is rigged against them. |
| In interviews, a cross section of society — from lawyers, bankers and former senior public servants to high school students — said that since Hong Kong, a former British colony, returned to Chinese sovereignty in 1997, an elite beholden to the Chinese Communist Party has increasingly dominated the economy and opportunity, as well as politics. | In interviews, a cross section of society — from lawyers, bankers and former senior public servants to high school students — said that since Hong Kong, a former British colony, returned to Chinese sovereignty in 1997, an elite beholden to the Chinese Communist Party has increasingly dominated the economy and opportunity, as well as politics. |
| “We want a fair, open and equal election,” said Simon Yau, 50, an employee of a marketing firm, who voted in the referendum. “The government has sided with corporations, the rich.” | “We want a fair, open and equal election,” said Simon Yau, 50, an employee of a marketing firm, who voted in the referendum. “The government has sided with corporations, the rich.” |
| Signs of dissatisfaction are cropping up everywhere. The referendum, undertaken by a grass-roots movement called Occupy Central With Love and Peace and a university-affiliated polling group, aimed to collect 100,000 votes. By early Saturday morning, nine days into a 10-day ballot period, it had collected more than 750,000 votes. High school and university students have been among the most ardent supporters, staffing polling booths and street stalls and coaxing parents and siblings to cast ballots. | Signs of dissatisfaction are cropping up everywhere. The referendum, undertaken by a grass-roots movement called Occupy Central With Love and Peace and a university-affiliated polling group, aimed to collect 100,000 votes. By early Saturday morning, nine days into a 10-day ballot period, it had collected more than 750,000 votes. High school and university students have been among the most ardent supporters, staffing polling booths and street stalls and coaxing parents and siblings to cast ballots. |
| On Friday, hundreds of lawyers, many clad in black, marched from the High Court in silent protest against a new policy paper from Beijing that they said threatened the independence of Hong Kong judges and court officials by demanding loyalty to China. The marchers, including eight former chiefs of the Hong Kong Bar Association, say the policy could undermine judicial independence. | On Friday, hundreds of lawyers, many clad in black, marched from the High Court in silent protest against a new policy paper from Beijing that they said threatened the independence of Hong Kong judges and court officials by demanding loyalty to China. The marchers, including eight former chiefs of the Hong Kong Bar Association, say the policy could undermine judicial independence. |
| If the city fails to adopt a robustly democratic method for electing the chief executive, the Occupy group has threatened to hold sit-ins and engage in civil disobedience in the city’s financial heart, Central. On Tuesday, the anniversary of Hong Kong’s return to China, groups opposed to mainland government policies will stage an annual rally, providing the next important gauge of the public mood. | If the city fails to adopt a robustly democratic method for electing the chief executive, the Occupy group has threatened to hold sit-ins and engage in civil disobedience in the city’s financial heart, Central. On Tuesday, the anniversary of Hong Kong’s return to China, groups opposed to mainland government policies will stage an annual rally, providing the next important gauge of the public mood. |
| Polls indicate discontent has been building. A telephone survey by the Hong Kong Transition Project, conducted in December, found dissatisfaction with the way the Chinese government was handling Hong Kong at its highest level in a decade, with 52 percent of Hong Kong residents saying they were dissatisfied. Alienation runs highest among the young, with 82 percent of people ages 21 to 29 saying they were dissatisfied, and 65 percent of people in that age bracket saying they were dissatisfied or very dissatisfied with life in the city. | Polls indicate discontent has been building. A telephone survey by the Hong Kong Transition Project, conducted in December, found dissatisfaction with the way the Chinese government was handling Hong Kong at its highest level in a decade, with 52 percent of Hong Kong residents saying they were dissatisfied. Alienation runs highest among the young, with 82 percent of people ages 21 to 29 saying they were dissatisfied, and 65 percent of people in that age bracket saying they were dissatisfied or very dissatisfied with life in the city. |
| “They are more sensitive to this great division of wealth,” said Joseph Wong Wing-ping, a former senior public servant in Hong Kong who has been critical of what he calls the city leaders’ submissiveness to Beijing. “The society is changing, and you have more and more of this discontented, active, sometimes assertive civil society led by the younger generation.” | “They are more sensitive to this great division of wealth,” said Joseph Wong Wing-ping, a former senior public servant in Hong Kong who has been critical of what he calls the city leaders’ submissiveness to Beijing. “The society is changing, and you have more and more of this discontented, active, sometimes assertive civil society led by the younger generation.” |
| Unlike the Occupy Wall Street movement that began in New York in 2011, Hong Kong’s Occupy Central is not in revolt against the capitalist financial system, and its leaders include well-paid lawyers, academics and financial investors. But especially among the students and young activists who have been its most ardent supporters, the political demands carry an edge of economic frustration. | Unlike the Occupy Wall Street movement that began in New York in 2011, Hong Kong’s Occupy Central is not in revolt against the capitalist financial system, and its leaders include well-paid lawyers, academics and financial investors. But especially among the students and young activists who have been its most ardent supporters, the political demands carry an edge of economic frustration. |
| Hong Kong has thrived economically since the end of British rule under an arrangement known as “one country, two systems,” which allows it to retain freedoms not permitted on the mainland. Today the skyline bristles with bright new skyscrapers, and many public facilities, including the subway, are marvels of efficiency. But the city’s income inequality has risen since China resumed sovereignty, after climbing steeply in the previous decade, and middle-class residents increasingly link concerns about high home prices and living costs to grievances about the political system. | Hong Kong has thrived economically since the end of British rule under an arrangement known as “one country, two systems,” which allows it to retain freedoms not permitted on the mainland. Today the skyline bristles with bright new skyscrapers, and many public facilities, including the subway, are marvels of efficiency. But the city’s income inequality has risen since China resumed sovereignty, after climbing steeply in the previous decade, and middle-class residents increasingly link concerns about high home prices and living costs to grievances about the political system. |
| Fueling a sense of unfairness, the Communist Party elite and their associates play an increasingly prominent role in the city’s business establishment. Six of the 10 biggest companies on the Hong Kong stock market’s Hang Seng index are Chinese state-owned companies, with chief executives who are appointed by the Communist Party. | Fueling a sense of unfairness, the Communist Party elite and their associates play an increasingly prominent role in the city’s business establishment. Six of the 10 biggest companies on the Hong Kong stock market’s Hang Seng index are Chinese state-owned companies, with chief executives who are appointed by the Communist Party. |
| Mainlanders with party ties also hold many influential positions in the city’s banking industry. JPMorgan Chase’s former vice chairman for Asia investment banking, Fang Fang, a member of a political advisory body to China’s government, was arrested in Hong Kong this year after being the subject of an American corruption investigation. The descendants of many Communist leaders, including grandsons of the former Chinese leaders Jiang Zemin and Deng Xiaoping, have worked in Hong Kong investment companies. | Mainlanders with party ties also hold many influential positions in the city’s banking industry. JPMorgan Chase’s former vice chairman for Asia investment banking, Fang Fang, a member of a political advisory body to China’s government, was arrested in Hong Kong this year after being the subject of an American corruption investigation. The descendants of many Communist leaders, including grandsons of the former Chinese leaders Jiang Zemin and Deng Xiaoping, have worked in Hong Kong investment companies. |
| Critics say Chinese patronage politics has warped the economy, shutting out qualified people and skewing wealth distribution. | Critics say Chinese patronage politics has warped the economy, shutting out qualified people and skewing wealth distribution. |
| “It’s not a fair playing field here,” said Bill Tsang, 51, a retired stock market executive who has helped recruit people in the financial sector to support Occupy Central. “Hong Kong nowadays becomes corrupt, and becomes not performance-driven but relationship-driven.” | “It’s not a fair playing field here,” said Bill Tsang, 51, a retired stock market executive who has helped recruit people in the financial sector to support Occupy Central. “Hong Kong nowadays becomes corrupt, and becomes not performance-driven but relationship-driven.” |
| Anxieties over Hong Kong’s future have coalesced around the issue of the chief executive, who is currently selected by a 1,200-member committee dominated by Chinese Communist Party loyalists. The Chinese government has promised to allow the popular election of the chief executive starting in 2017, but it has indicated it would retain control of choosing candidates to weed out those not loyal to Beijing. | Anxieties over Hong Kong’s future have coalesced around the issue of the chief executive, who is currently selected by a 1,200-member committee dominated by Chinese Communist Party loyalists. The Chinese government has promised to allow the popular election of the chief executive starting in 2017, but it has indicated it would retain control of choosing candidates to weed out those not loyal to Beijing. |
| The Occupy referendum gives voters a choice of three methods, each allowing candidates to secure a nomination by collecting the signatures of at least 1 percent of voters, currently about 35,000 names. | The Occupy referendum gives voters a choice of three methods, each allowing candidates to secure a nomination by collecting the signatures of at least 1 percent of voters, currently about 35,000 names. |
| Beijing and its supporters accuse Occupy Central of being a Trojan horse for subversion. | Beijing and its supporters accuse Occupy Central of being a Trojan horse for subversion. |
| “We mustn’t have wild thoughts and delusions,” Christopher Cheung Wah-fung, a businessman and member of Hong Kong’s Legislative Council who supports Chinese government policies, said in an interview. China has given Hong Kong many economic benefits, he said. “The only thing is that you must not use Hong Kong as an anti-Communist base and affect domestic politics.” | “We mustn’t have wild thoughts and delusions,” Christopher Cheung Wah-fung, a businessman and member of Hong Kong’s Legislative Council who supports Chinese government policies, said in an interview. China has given Hong Kong many economic benefits, he said. “The only thing is that you must not use Hong Kong as an anti-Communist base and affect domestic politics.” |
| The city government is expected to introduce its electoral overhaul plans late this year, with guidance from Beijing. China has already said it rejects the proposals for nomination by public petition, which would allow potential candidates to bypass a nominating committee dominated by Beijing loyalists. | The city government is expected to introduce its electoral overhaul plans late this year, with guidance from Beijing. China has already said it rejects the proposals for nomination by public petition, which would allow potential candidates to bypass a nominating committee dominated by Beijing loyalists. |
| The push for democratic electoral change has won support from people like Mr. Wong, the former civil servant, who were once pillars of the establishment but now say China’s encroachments are curtailing the freedoms that have made Hong Kong Asia’s biggest financial center. | The push for democratic electoral change has won support from people like Mr. Wong, the former civil servant, who were once pillars of the establishment but now say China’s encroachments are curtailing the freedoms that have made Hong Kong Asia’s biggest financial center. |
| Another supporter is Anson Chan, 74, Hong Kong’s former chief secretary, the second-highest post in government, who has become increasingly critical of the Hong Kong government and Beijing, warning about what she sees as an erosion of the autonomy that China promised to respect. | Another supporter is Anson Chan, 74, Hong Kong’s former chief secretary, the second-highest post in government, who has become increasingly critical of the Hong Kong government and Beijing, warning about what she sees as an erosion of the autonomy that China promised to respect. |
| “I am personally extremely disappointed and in many ways very pained to see what is happening to Hong Kong barely 17 years after the handover,” she said in an interview this month. | “I am personally extremely disappointed and in many ways very pained to see what is happening to Hong Kong barely 17 years after the handover,” she said in an interview this month. |
| The youth of Hong Kong, who have grown up under Chinese tutelage, have little compunction about opposing policies they abhor. Young protesters defeated a “patriotic education” curriculum proposed by the government in 2012 that critics said sought to instill Communist Party dogma. | |
| Alex Chow Yong Kang, 23, the secretary general of the Hong Kong Federation of Students, said he had grown up assuming he would follow his father into business, but he was jolted as a high school student in 2008 when he attended a candlelight vigil for those killed in the 1989 crackdown around Tiananmen Square in Beijing. (Mr. Chow is not related to Agnes Chow, the high school activist.) | Alex Chow Yong Kang, 23, the secretary general of the Hong Kong Federation of Students, said he had grown up assuming he would follow his father into business, but he was jolted as a high school student in 2008 when he attended a candlelight vigil for those killed in the 1989 crackdown around Tiananmen Square in Beijing. (Mr. Chow is not related to Agnes Chow, the high school activist.) |
| Securing a broad democratic franchise for Hong Kong, he said, is the only way to challenge the merging of party influence and elite business interests. | Securing a broad democratic franchise for Hong Kong, he said, is the only way to challenge the merging of party influence and elite business interests. |
| “I am a citizen of this country; why do I not have the right to a voice?” he asked. “Why do I not have the right to nominate someone, or even to kick someone out — not to speak of the Communists, even the Hong Kong government?” | “I am a citizen of this country; why do I not have the right to a voice?” he asked. “Why do I not have the right to nominate someone, or even to kick someone out — not to speak of the Communists, even the Hong Kong government?” |
| Mr. Chow said his mother worried that he might be arrested if the Occupy movement carried out its threatened sit-in. “ ‘Don’t stand too close to the front. Don’t go to jail,’ she told me.” | Mr. Chow said his mother worried that he might be arrested if the Occupy movement carried out its threatened sit-in. “ ‘Don’t stand too close to the front. Don’t go to jail,’ she told me.” |
| “Sometimes we have to fight for our beliefs,” Mr. Chow said he replied. “There’s no alternative in Hong Kong.” | “Sometimes we have to fight for our beliefs,” Mr. Chow said he replied. “There’s no alternative in Hong Kong.” |