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PROSPECTS FOR DEMOCRACY IN HONG KONG: ASSESSING CHINA’S INTERNATIONAL COMMITMENTS ROUNDTABLE BEFORE THE CONGRESSIONAL-EXECUTIVE COMMISSION ON CHINA ONE HUNDRED ELEVENTH CONGRESS SECOND SESSION JULY 14, 2010 Printed for the use of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China ( Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.cecc.gov U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 57–903 PDF WASHINGTON : 2010 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: toll free (866) 512–1800; DC area (202) 512–1800 Fax: (202) 512–2104 Mail: Stop IDCC, Washington, DC 20402–0001 VerDate Mar 15 2010 10:17 Nov 23, 2010 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 5011 Sfmt 5011 U:\DOCS\57903.TXT DEIDRE C O N T E N T S Page Opening statement of Douglas Grob, Cochairman’s Senior Staff Member, Con- gressional-Executive Commission on China ...................................................... 1 Mann, Sharon, Senior Counsel, Congressional-Executive Commission on China ..................................................................................................................... 2 Martin, Michael F., Specialist in Asian Affairs, Congressional Research Serv- ice .......................................................................................................................... 3 Keatley, Robert, Founder and Editor, the Hong Kong Journal, Former Editor, the Wall Street Journal Asia, Wall Street Journal Europe, and South China Morning Post ............................................................................................. 6 DeGolyer, Michael, Hong Kong Baptist University, Professor of Government and International Studies and Director, the Hong Kong Transition Project .. 9 Bork, Ellen, Director, Democracy and Human Rights, Foreign Policy Initia- tive ......................................................................................................................... 12 APPENDIX PREPARED STATEMENTS Keatley, Robert ........................................................................................................ 26 DeGolyer, Michael ................................................................................................... 27 Bork, Ellen ............................................................................................................... 30 (II) VerDate Mar 15 2010 10:17 Nov 23, 2010 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 U:\DOCS\57903.TXT DEIDRE PROSPECTS FOR DEMOCRACY IN HONG KONG: ASSESSING CHINA’S INTERNATIONAL COMMITMENTS WEDNESDAY, JULY 14, 2010 CONGRESSIONAL-EXECUTIVE COMMISSION ON CHINA, Washington, DC. The roundtable was convened, pursuant to notice, at 3:06 p.m., in room 138, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Douglas Grob (Co- chairman’s Senior Staff Member) presiding. Also present: Sharon Mann, Senior Counsel. OPENING STATEMENT OF DOUGLAS GROB, COCHAIRMAN’S SENIOR STAFF MEMBER, CONGRESSIONAL-EXECUTIVE COM- MISSION ON CHINA Mr. GROB. Welcome, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you very much for joining us here today. My name is Doug Grob, and I am Cochairman Sander Levin’s Senior Staff Member on the staff of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China [CECC]. I would like to recognize, in the au- dience, Charlotte Oldham-Moore, Staff Director of the Commission. On behalf of Chairman Byron Dorgan and Cochairman Levin, we would like to welcome you to this Congressional-Executive Com- mission on China roundtable on ‘‘Prospects for Democracy in Hong Kong: Assessing China’s International Commitments.’’ I apologize for the slight delay in getting started. We are await- ing our last speaker, but we will proceed now, nonetheless. Today we are going to be looking at prospects for democracy in Hong Kong. Hong Kong’s basic freedoms, for the most part, have been maintained under the ‘‘one country, two systems’’ framework. In June of this year, Hong Kong took its first steps toward con- stitutional reform since the British handed the territory back to China in 1997. In this roundtable today we are going to examine these recent constitutional reforms, mainland China’s engagement in Hong Kong, and how Hong Kong may contribute to the development of democracy and civil society in China. Perfect timing, Mr. Keatley. Thank you very much. We have only just gotten started. Thank you. And I would like to introduce my colleague, Sharon Mann, Senior Counsel on the Commission staff, for some introductory remarks. Sharon? (1) VerDate Mar 15 2010 10:17 Nov 23, 2010 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 U:\DOCS\57903.TXT DEIDRE 2 STATEMENT OF SHARON MANN, SENIOR COUNSEL, CONGRESSIONAL-EXECUTIVE COMMISSION ON CHINA Ms. MANN. First, I would like to welcome you to this roundtable on Hong Kong. Hong Kong is a place that is near and dear to many of us. I think there are a number of people here who spent a good deal of time there. It is also a very important platform for people who are interested in development of democracy, human rights, and rule of law in China. The only place in China to really enjoy freedom of the press, free speech, and freedom to organize and question your own govern- ment is Hong Kong. An example of this was when, in 2003, half a million people in Hong Kong turned out when the government proposed legislation on national security, and the government pulled back the legislation. Also, every year on June 4, Hong Kong is the one place in China where there are commemorations. There is a peaceful demonstration commemorating the Tiananmen pro- test. So Hong Kong is a very important place, but the relationship be- tween Hong Kong and China is a two-way street. I think it’s very useful to keep an eye on development of democracy in Hong Kong and what that means for democratic development in China, and then what type of democracy in Hong Kong China will allow. I be- lieve this is important not only for people who are interested in Hong Kong, but for anyone interested in China. Before I turn this over to our panelists, I wanted to give a special welcome to John Kamm, who is in the audience. He is the founder and head of a human rights organization called Dui Hua, which works on behalf of human rights defenders who have been impris- oned in China. John has very deep ties to Hong Kong. I’m hoping he’ll be here for the Q&A and ask some very good questions and have excellent comments. Anyway, I’d like to turn it over to Michael Martin. Mr. GROB. Actually, I’ve got to do some introductions. Ms. MANN. Okay. Sorry. Mr. GROB. I have the privilege of introducing our speakers today. We have, to my left and in the order in which they will speak, Mi- chael Martin, Specialist in Asian Affairs for the Congressional Re- search Service; to my immediate left, Robert Keatley, Founder and Editor of the Hong Kong Journal, and formerly an editor with the Wall Street Journal Asia, Wall Street Journal Europe, and South China Morning Post; to my right, Professor Michael DeGolyer of Hong Kong Baptist University, where he is Professor of Govern- ment and International Studies, and Director of the very important Hong Kong Transition Project; and finally, to my far right, Ellen Bork, Director of Democracy and Human Rights for the Foreign Policy Initiative. I’d like to ask our speakers to please limit your remarks to 7 to 10 minutes, if possible—and even if not possible—so that we can ensure that we have enough time for a vibrant and free-flowing question and answer session following our speakers’ presentations. So at this time I’d like to turn the floor over to Michael Martin. VerDate Mar 15 2010 10:17 Nov 23, 2010 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 U:\DOCS\57903.TXT DEIDRE 3 STATEMENT OF MICHAEL F. MARTIN, SPECIALIST IN ASIAN AFFAIRS, CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH SERVICE Mr. MARTIN. Okay. Well, thank you, Douglas and Sharon, for this invitation to speak today. I need to start with a couple of dis- claimers. Although I am here as a staffer of the Congressional Re- search Service, my comments are not necessarily reflective of the official views of the Congressional Research Service, but they are my own. The second disclaimer is a slightly different one, which is to say I have a long—longer than I want to think about—history back in Hong Kong, including working at Baptist University—back then Baptist College—where I met Michael DeGolyer. I worked for the Hong Kong Trade Development Council for four and a half years, spanning the Handover period. In addition, I mar- ried a woman from Hong Kong, and most of her immediate family still lives, resides, and works or studies in Hong Kong. So, Hong Kong is part of my life. So let me proceed, trying to be clear, concise, and quick, because I have a fair number of things that they asked me to cover in 7 to 10 minutes. Since I am here on behalf of the Congressional Research Service [CRS], or as part of CRS, I’m going to focus my comments particu- larly on congressional interests or concerns, so I’m not speaking on behalf of the Executive Branch, President Obama, the State De- partment, or any other aspect of the U.S. Government; they may speak for themselves when they choose to. I guess I’ll start out with what is going to be not the best of jokes, but I’ll say it anyway. Several of my friends from the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office are here. Also, when I go to Hong Kong and speak to Hong Kong Government officials, I often tell them, be careful what you ask for from Congress. They often say, we don’t get enough interest from Congress. I sometimes point out, getting more interest from Congress isn’t necessarily to your ad- vantage. But that having been said, I think the 1992 Hong Kong Policy Act still, to a great extent, reflects congressional concerns, interests and preferences about the situation in Hong Kong. In particular, let me point out certain aspects of that law, which are still U.S. law, and certain aspects that aren’t in that law. In particular, it starts out with a recognition of what for short- hand I’ll call the Joint Declaration—I’ll explain that in a minute— which guarantees a high degree of autonomy, with the exceptions of defense and foreign affairs, for Hong Kong.

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