Mark Dubowitz Hong Kong's protests against China show U.S. appeasement of Beijing has failed to bri

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Mark Dubowitz  Hong Kong's protests against China show U.S. appeasement of Beijing has failed to bring reform

A policy of moderation through economic seduction was delusional, but a shift to economic coercion without emphasizing human rights will be just as ineffective.
Image: Protesters clash with police after a rally against an extradition law in Hong Kong on June 10, 2019.

June 11, 2019, 12:03 PM CDT
By Mark Dubowitz, CEO of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies

Violent clashes have broken out in Hong Kong following protests that saw an estimated 1 million residents take to the streets over the weekend. The demonstrators oppose a proposed law that would allow those suspected of criminal offenses to be extradited to mainland China. Hong Kong citizens fear that, if the bill is adopted, China’s notoriously repressive and corrupt criminal laws will be used against Beijing’s political opponents in Hong Kong.

Twenty-two years ago, on July 1, 1997, the British government handed over control of Hong Kong to China. Beijing inherited a thriving market economy shaped by British democratic norms and the rule of law. At the time, Western governments hoped that money — in this case, Hong Kong’s booming economy — would induce China to honor its pledge of “one country, two systems,” and ensure that the city remained the financial capital of Asia with its democratic traditions intact.

To its credit, the Trump administration seems to be acknowledging that a tougher line against China is finally warranted.

The proposed bill at the center of the protests now makes it abundantly clear that this was a delusion: The main imperative for Beijing is keeping its power intact, and taking away the remaining freedoms in Hong Kong that challenge the supremacy of the Chinese Communist Party.

Read more at: https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/hong-kong-s-protests-against-china-show-u-s-appeasement-ncna1016201