Taiwan & Hong Kong Are the New Frontlines of Freedom

“One country, two systems” has been at the center of controversy in the months-long Hong Kong protests.  In the recent Taiwan elections, the policy has, once again, taken the spotlight.  In both instances, questions surrounding the implementation of the policy (if not its outright rejection) antagonized China, but proved to be beneficial to the cause of freedom.

The “one country, two systems” policy essentially means that Hong Kong (and Macau) can have different political and economic systems from the mainland, while remaining part of the People’s Republic of China.  In January 2019, Chinese President Xi Jinping also endorsed it as a model for China-Taiwan relations, which unwittingly unified the Taiwanese in defense of their national identity.  Six months after, in Hong Kong, the implications of the extradition bill for the observance of the policy and the rule of law sparked popular protests which continue to this day.

Thus began a series of distinct but intertwined events which put Taiwan and Hong Kong on the frontlines of freedom.  It was in this regard that the Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats (CALD) recently organized a joint mission in these two places.  The mission started with an election observation in Taipei and Hualien on 8-12 January, followed by a series of meetings with political leaders and democracy activists in Hong Kong on 12-14 January.

In Taipei, the delegation was welcomed by Chih-wei Chen, FRGS, Deputy Director of Department of International Affairs, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) of Taiwan.  The delegates also visited campaign offices and listened to the election briefing provided by J. Michael Cole (Senior Fellow, Global Taiwan Institute), Yen-jong Lee (DPP Spokesperson), Ahai Lua (Tzu Chi Buddhist University, Hualien) and Andrea Yang (Director, DPP Department of Press and Information).

“The results of these elections is sending a very powerful message to the world – that Taiwan will never be part of China, and that ‘one country, two systems’ is not acceptable in any form, especially after seeing what’s happening in Hong Kong”, said Yang. “This is not a very easy time because the rise of China is posing a lot of challenges in the region, but we can be very confident that democracy will win in the end.”

On the eve of the elections, the Taiwanese people stood firm on the side of democracy and freedom when they delivered a landslide victory for incumbent President Tsai Ing-wen.  DPP’s Tsai received 57.1% of the total votes cast, while her main opponent, Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu of the Koumintang (KMT) garnered 38.6%.  DPP also retained its majority in parliament with 61 seats, although it lost some constituencies such as Hualien, which the CALD delegates also visited, and where they received a warm reception from CALD Chairperson Bi-khim Hsiao.

In her post-election speech, President Tsai emphasized Taiwan’s commitment to democratic values and the preservation of its national identity: “The results of this election carry an added significance, because they have shown that when our sovereignty and democracy are threatened, the Taiwanese people will shout our determination even more loudly back.”

Shouting loudly back at the Carrie Lam administration and China is what Hong Kong has been doing in the past 6 months in defense of civil liberties and the rule of law.  The political crisis emanated from the Lam administration’s attempt to pass an extradition bill, which the Hong Kong people consider as a death knell for the “one country, two systems” guaranteeing the territory’s high degree of autonomy based on the rule of law and on freedoms associated with an open society.

In an attempt to understand the worsening political conflict, the CALD delegation flew to Hong Kong after observing Taiwan’s elections.  In a series of meetings held at the city’s Legislative Council, the delegation members were able to meet with the pan-democratic camp and the student leaders at the forefront of the protests.  Briefings on the political situation were provided by Fernando Cheung Chiu-hung (Legislative Council Member, Labour Party), Cyd Ho Sau-lan (Former Legislative Council Member, Labour Party), Sin Chung-kai (CALD Individual Member and District Council Chair, Democratic Party), Eric Lai Yan-ho (Civil and Human Rights Front) and Dennis Kwok Wing-hang (Legislative Council Member, Civic Party).

Other Hong Kong attendees included Civic Party Legislator Alan Leong Kah-kit, Democratic Party Legislator Hui Chi-fung, District Council Member Ramon Yuen Hoi-man, Barrister Senia Ng Sze-nok, District Council Member Jordan Pang Ka-ho, District Council Member Hung Chun-hin, and student leaders Owan Li and Gordan Wong.

Addressing the delegates on how to deal with China, Emily Lau, CALD Individual Member and Democratic Party’s Chairperson of International Affairs Committee said: “What we need to do is to tell China: You are a member of the international community.  You should be a responsible member.  You should abide by the civilized code of behavior of the international community.  And what democracies should demand from China is reciprocity… If everybody expects China to behave like that, it will be pressured — urged — to behave in a more civilized manner.”

At the moment, however, this is unfortunately not happening.  Hence, China can easily renege on its promise of high degree of autonomy for Hong Kong, and is even emboldened to impose the “one country, two systems” on Taiwan.

“The outside world should know China’s intentions for Hong Kong”, said CALD Individual Member and Founding Chair of the Democratic Party Martin Lee. “And if China can break this international treaty (on Hong Kong), so blatantly, we just cannot trust China in any other international treaty.”

The Taiwanese people could not agree more.