The repressive tyrants of Communist China keep whittling away at Hong Kong's hopes and dreams, as well as the promises made to Britain before the transfer of power in 1997.
Clamping down further on Hong Kong's autonomy, Beijing warned the territory's legislature yesterday it has no right to criticize the central government's decision to rule out full democracy in the near future.Posted by Alan at May 9, 2004 08:09 AMThe state-run Xinhua news agency quoted a top official with China's liaison office in Hong Kong as saying local lawmakers would be acting unconstitutionally if they consider any motions that express "discontent with" or "condemn" China's ruling on democratic reform.
Another top Chinese official also branded the legislature's democracy advocates "bananas" — yellow-skinned Chinese on the outside, but with Western beliefs inside.
"These people, who badmouth China and Hong Kong, are sinners of the Chinese nation," Cheng Siwei, vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, was quoted as saying by the Chinese newspaper Ming Pao. "They are just like bananas, yellow outside but white inside."
Pro-democracy forces charge that Beijing unilaterally rewrote the territory's constitution, the Basic Law, when it ruled out direct elections of Hong Kong's next leader in 2007 and all lawmakers in 2008.
They accused the central government of rolling back freedom of speech, one of the Western-style civil liberties guaranteed to this former British colony.