Today Hong Kong, Tomorrow the World by Mark L. Clifford

Universal suffrage and free elections have not been instituted, harassment and brutality have become normalized, and activists are being jailed en masse. An international treaty established a Special Administrative Region (SAR) with a far freer political system than that of Communist China-one with its own currency and government administration, a common-law legal system, and freedoms of press, speech, and religion.īut as the halfway mark of the SAR’s lifespan approaches in 2022, it is clear that China has not kept its word. In preparation for handing the territory over to China in 1997, Deng Xiaoping promised that it would remain highly autonomous for fifty years. A powerful and dramatic mix of history and on-the-ground reporting, this book is the definitive account of one of the most important geopolitical standoffs of our time.A gripping history of China's deteriorating relationship with Hong Kong, and its implications for the rest of the world.įor 150 years as a British colony, Hong Kong was a beacon of prosperity where people, money, and technology flowed freely, and residents enjoyed many civil liberties. Clifford has witnessed this transformation firsthand.

A Hong Kong resident from 1992 to 2021, author Mark L.

Today Hong Kong, Tomorrow the World tells the complete story of how a city once famed for protests so peaceful that toddlers joined grandparents became a place where police have fired tear gas, rubber bullets and even live ammunition at their neighbors, while pro-government hooligans attack demonstrators. This tragic backslide has dire worldwide implications. But as the halfway mark of the SAR's lifespan approaches in 2022, it is clear that China has not kept its word. An international treaty established a Special Administrative Region (SAR) with a far freer political system than that of Communist China. For 150 years as a British colony, Hong Kong was a beacon of prosperity where people, money, and technology flowed freely, and residents enjoyed many civil liberties.

Today Hong Kong, Tomorrow the World by Mark L. Clifford