Original subtitles

china has made a decision to end hong

kong's free status at the end of may

2020 the national people's assembly the

highest legislative body in the people's

republic of china voted to implement a

new security act in hong kong that will

give the chinese regime the opportunity

to pursue those propagating speeches

ideas and political messages in the

currently autonomous city a law that

will allow the chinese dictatorship to

deploy

its security and intelligence services

to hong kong to put an end to any

symptoms of dissent

in this image that you see on screen xi

jinping himself is voting in favor of

this law this image is a reflection of

how china is slowly swallowing the

formerly known pearl of the east

i can't imagine living under the shadow

of the secret police it seems that the

last firewall that protects our freedoms

is about to collapse

alan a hong kong university student in a

statement to the asia nikai review

the model of one country two systems

that had been guaranteed to the people

of hong kong has been completely broken

down this is the saddest period in hong

kong i have no words to express in words

the sense of despair that we have dennis

kwok pro-democratic member of hong

kong's legislative chamber

hong kong hedge funds explore the exit

as a national security law looms the

financial times

this is a topic that we are especially

concerned about on visualpolitik and

something that we have already talked

about

in a recent video here on the channel

however one question remained unanswered

how has the international community

reacted to what looks like the beginning

of the end of what has been

until now one of the freest territories

in the world well the truth is that the

international condemnation has been

clearly lukewarm lukewarm because in

general practically nothing has been

said or done

[Music]

so far the country that has made the

most noise has been the united states

which has threatened to stop considering

hong kong as an autonomous territory and

that could mean that some of the

advantages this city has in its

relations with the united states would

soon disappear we're talking about

privileges such as reduced tariffs free

movement of people

and capital almost unlimited access to

u.s technology and even the absence of

restrictions on exchanges with the

dollar

big action was taken today by the trump

administration

against the communist chinese party

secretary of state pompeo notifying

congress that hong kong is no longer

autonomous and no longer warrants

special treatment

under u.s law

however so far it has limited threats

only in the commercial sphere which

would be of little relevance because

direct exports from hong kong to the

united states are minimal however the

united states is not the only country

that is taking action indeed despite the

lukewarm international response and

beyond the application of sanctions that

would mostly punish the very people of

hong kong

some measures have been put on the table

that are as ingenious as they are

potentially effective

friends can hong kong be saved listen up

metropolis or hong kong 2.0

let's see if there is one country that

has a particular responsibility for what

could happen in hong kong it is the

united kingdom

after all almost half of all hong kong

citizens were born when hong kong was

still governed by the british crown

and that is precisely what has made the

government of this country speak out of

course in a very different way than

of the united states look at this

headline because here you can see that

shots have clearly been fired

june 3rd 2020 boris johnson pledges to

admit 3 million from hong kong to the uk

new york times yes that's right the

british authority's first reaction has

been to extend a kind of

lifeline for all hong kong people who

may feel threatened by the growing

control of the chinese dictatorship and

as you all know hong kong was part of

the united kingdom

up until the 1st of july 1997. the date

on which the transfer of its sovereignty

to chinese hands was affected

however despite being part of the united

kingdom until 97 hong kong

citizens didn't have british citizenship

since back in the 1960s but

only the rights to apply for what is

known as british overseas nationality a

status that gives any of the

approximately 350 000

hong kongers that are eligible for it a

british passport and the possibility of

using the services of embassies and

consulates of the uk throughout the

world it is a status however that does

not grant holders the right to live or

work in the uk

[Music]

well what boris johnson's government is

currently proposing would go much

further on the one hand allow the

possibility that the nearly three

million people who were born in hong

kong before 1997

may reapply for their status on the

other hand to extend the rights this

status would entail

you see the idea that the government has

put on the table is that this status as

a british overseas national would now

allow all holders to stay in the uk for

12 months

holders can easily apply to be able to

work and study in the country and the

12-month period can be extended without

any difficulty and not only that the

idea circulating in the british

government is that this method could

also become a convenient path a shortcut

to full british citizenship if china

continues

on this path and implements this

national security legislation we will do

so we will allow holders of british

overseas nationals passports to come to

the uk and apply to work and study for

extended periods of 12 months

and in turn provide them with a path to

future citizenship dominic rabb

uk foreign minister that is the uk is

giving hong kong citizens a whole

new escape route but hold on a minute is

london thinking that suddenly hundreds

and hundreds of thousands of hong kong

residents will pack up and move to the

uk

well obviously not however if this

initiative were put into action

most hong kong nationals would have a

very attractive path for escaping the

excesses of the chinese government that

is

anyone who is eligible could easily

escape whenever they see fit

without having to go through the

complicated procedure of seeking

political asylum for example if

as the chinese government seems to want

its control over hong kong and the

freedoms of the hong kong people are to

be made stricter

many politicians entrepreneurs

dissidents and students could at any

time move to a safe haven with all the

guarantees that they would need and not

only that at the same time it would push

the chinese government to think twice

before crossing a red line because doing

so could lead to a complete brain drain

and talent exodus

[Applause]

and this is a situation that does have a

precedent in the late 1960s and early

1970s ugandan dictator idiyamin and

the kenyan government expelled tens of

thousands of people of southern indian

descent

who in many cases had a british passport

in 1972

and faced with this situation the

british government of conservative

edward heath made it possible for

thousands of these refugees to settle in

the uk

nearly 30 000 people followed this path

leading to one of the most

socially and economically successful

migrant cohorts in the country

[Music]

friends we are facing an ingenious

solution that under the circumstances

could be the best possible response to

china's threat

unlike sanctions not only does it not

punish the hong kong people themselves

but it actually gives them a whole new

lifeline and it is a move that has

certainly infuriated china

xi jinping's government has already made

it clear that it is absolutely opposed

to this measure and has threatened

retaliation and when beijing talks about

retaliation

you can be sure that they're talking

about financial retaliation which by the

way raises serious doubts about whether

london will eventually carry out this

move

let's not forget the weight that china

could bring to bear on the post-brexit

economy

in any case the question that comes up

is but what if with the support of the

international community the british

government granted this privilege to all

hong kong people wouldn't that be a

massive response to xi jinping's

expansionist veracity wouldn't it be a

way to make hong kong a symbol of the

uk's commitment to free countries in the

fight against the expansion of

authoritarianism

[Music]

well it doesn't all end here another

idea has been put forward a much more

original idea that could spell

revolution

something that i would say probably

won't happen but in any case it is

interesting to keep in mind could you

imagine

what would happen if the uk pushed for a

creation of a kind of new hong kong

in its own territory now stay with me i

haven't quite lost the plot it's an idea

that the adam smith institute has put

forward and the truth is that it

wouldn't be as far-fetched as it might

seem at first glance

[Music]

following the example of the square mile

and above all johnson's proposal for

free ports that we have already talked

about on visualpolitik the united

kingdom could enable a space within its

territory

where any hong kong citizen or company

could be freely transplanted a space

that would have regulations and a tax

system similar to what currently exists

in hong kong today

[Music]

in other words we're talking about

creating a special economic zone that

could become the best connection point

between asia and europe whilst giving

hong kong citizens even more options and

no it's actually not such a crazy

approach

keep in mind that much of the uk's

economic success over the past few

decades

has centered on the square mile and the

special regulations that the uk approved

for the financial industry this would

basically be something similar

in addition it would also be a way for

the united kingdom to increase its

competitiveness

strengthen its ties with the asian

continent and attract business and

talent just when it needs it most having

carried out brexit a bold move don't you

think well that's where we'll leave it

for now

[Music]

but the uk aside there is another

country that is also following very

closely all that happens in the former

pearl of the east now listen up

[Music]

[Applause]

a restless first cousin

taiwan is keeping a close eye on the

events that are taking place in hong

kong and in taipei they are clear about

one thing if xi jinping's government

gets its way with hong kong its next

move may be to increase

pressure on this island an island that

is becoming their last refuge for many

dissidents and political players who

refuse to bend the knee to the chinese

dictatorship now that helps explain for

example why

applications for residence permits in

taiwan by hong kong citizens are

skyrocketing

number of hong kongers seeking residency

spikes the number of people from hong

kong applying for residency in taiwan

last year rose 41

the taipei times of course this also

carries a risk and in taipei they have

many doubts about which path to choose

now let me explain

on the one hand they have a great deal

of sympathy for hong kong residents who

have rebelled against the chinese

attempt to increase control over this

city but on the other hand it's not

clear that angering the chinese

government too much

may be the smartest option

[Music]

for the time being article 18 of the

hong kong macau act provides that the

taiwanese government will provide the

necessary assistance to residents of

hong kong and macau whose security and

freedom are immediately threatened for

political reasons

in practice however this law has not

been developed and the process

for asylum applications deadlines and

available budget

is unclear so far the taiwanese

government has not wanted to open up

this pandora's box

that is precisely why president xi who

as we

already discussed in previous videos is

not exactly very friendly with beijing

announced at the end of may the

formation of a task force to make a

final decision and to ensure once and

for all the rights that hong kong

citizens who apply for asylum in taiwan

will have one way or another and this

begs the question

should the international community

resolutely support the saiwan government

to make taiwan the great refuge in the

face of authoritarianism and

the growing expansionism of the xi

jinping regime this

is one of the questions that

international news should take notice of

at this point in time

hong kong is more than just a city it is

now becoming a symbol of where things

could go

over the next few years and we honestly

believe that one of the worst things

that could happen is that economic

problems will make the chinese

government give full prominence to its

political agenda and the trade war

doesn't help there anyway that's where

things stand but what response do you

think the international community

should give to china's growing meddling

in hong kong's local affairs

leave us your answer in the comments and

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[Music]